Only One-Third of Germans Satisfied With Democracy, Leipzig Study Finds

In brief

• A Leipzig study finds satisfaction with German democracy at its lowest level since 2002.
• Support for democracy as an idea fell to 89.3 percent, mainly due to a sharp drop in eastern Germany.
• The share of people with a consistently far-right worldview rose to 6.9 percent, and antisemitic attitudes increased.

Satisfaction with democracy at a record low

Fewer people in Germany are happy with how their democracy functions. According to the latest Leipzig Authoritarianism Study, only about one-third of respondents say they are satisfied with democracy as it works in practice (Autoritarismus-Studie: So sehr bröckelt die Überzeugung, Demokratie sei eine gute Idee – DER SPIEGEL) (Democracy study: One-quarter of Germans want a right-wing authoritarian dictatorship – DW). The Else Frenkel-Brunswik Institute for Democracy Research at the University of Leipzig, which leads the survey, presented the results in Berlin on Wednesday. The study has been run every two years since 2002 (Demokracja w Niemczech traci zaufanie. Rosną szowinizm i antysemityzm – Deutsche Welle).

Support for the idea of democracy slips below 90 percent

Backing for democracy as a principle also weakened. Approval stood at 89.3 percent nationwide, the first time it has fallen under the 90-percent mark since the series began (Лише третина німців задоволені станом демократії у Німеччині – Європейська правда) (Zufriedenheit mit Demokratie auf einem Tiefstand – MDR). The researchers link the decline mainly to eastern Germany, where support dropped from 94.6 percent in 2024 to 85.7 percent, while the west recorded a slight increase (Autoritarismus-Studie: Zustimmung für Demokratie sinkt auf Tiefstwert – DER SPIEGEL). Oliver Decker, who leads the study, said democracy has lost acceptance across broad sections of the population and warned about the growing pull of authoritarian longings.

Right-wing and antisemitic attitudes rise

The share of people holding a consistently far-right worldview has risen to 6.9 percent nationwide. The researchers had last measured a higher figure, 8.8 percent, in 2012. Antisemitic attitudes also increased. In one question, 34.9 percent of respondents fully agreed that foreigners had taken over Germany dangerously, and a further 24.4 percent showed potential agreement. On the claim that Jewish influence in Germany is still too large, 15.5 percent fully agreed and 21.7 percent showed potential agreement.

Methodology

The representative survey was carried out between mid-March and early June 2026. Researchers contacted more than 2,500 randomly selected people, and around 40 percent completed the extensive questionnaire.