Party Trustworthiness Scorecard

Not in Bundestag until 2017. Euro-skeptic founding phase (Lucke era 2013-2015) → right-wing populist turn (Petry 2015-2017) → Gauland/Weidel.

Continued climate denial. Vaccine misinformation during COVID. Cross-employment scandal emerges.

Weidel donation scandal. Foreign donation irregularities. Campaign finance violations.

Never governed federally. At local level (Landkreise since 2023): routine administration continued without major failures, but scope is limited. ZEW/academic analysis finds proposals contain internal contradictions. Grade NA because federal delivery cannot be assessed.

Multiple party splits (Lucke out 2015, Petry out 2017). Internal purges. Increasing radicalization documented by BfV (preliminary observation began).

"Kartellparteien" framing. Claims opponents are "anti-German." Höcke compared opponents to dictators. Multiple Unterlassungserklärungen. Systematic mischaracterization.

Too new for federal assessment. State-level coalition participation just beginning.

NATO/Two Plus Four claim refuted by Defense Ministry. Russia/Ukraine framing contested. Some claims unverifiable.

Too new for assessment. No scandals documented yet.

Never governed at federal level. State participation too recent to assess.

Constitutional law experts question Art. 21 GG compliance. Restrictive membership, limited delegate elections. "Cadre organization" concerns.

Wagenknecht accused Merz of wanting war with Russia — exaggeration. "Verbotspartei" framing of Grüne is contested but within political rhetoric bounds.

Major Schuldenbremse reversal (€500B fund after campaigning against it). Nuclear restart abandoned after hinting. AfD not contained (overtook CDU in polls Dec 2025).

Schuldenbremse campaign position contradicted within weeks. Nuclear restart quietly dropped. Infrastructure fund framed as "not breaking" the brake while being exempt from it.

No major corruption but Azerbaijan "Kaviar-Diplomatie" involving CDU MPs (Strenz €111K, Lintner millions). Karin Strenz disciplined 2019.

Approval dropped to 32% in 100 days. Of €300B infrastructure, only €5B in budget. No new rail projects. Deutschlandticket price increase. But asylum applications -50%.

Accepted results, participated in inquiries. Von der Leyen phone deletion concerning.

Generally restrained rhetoric in GroKo. Limited sharp attacks on coalition partner SPD. AfD entry to Bundestag (2017) was fought factually.

Ukraine position satisfies neither camp. Core social promises never tested at federal level. Thuringia governance mixed.

Generally factual communication. Internal contradictions public but honest. No documented systematic false claims.

No documented corruption scandals. Lowest side-income levels. Strong transparency advocacy.

Thuringia governance adequate under Ramelow. Berlin rent cap struck down. Party collapse from 9.2% to sub-5% suggests organizational failure.

Accepted electoral results. Internal splits handled publicly. BSW departure disruptive but democratic.

Generally factual. Social policy criticisms are data-backed. Not systematically misleading about opponents.

Not in Bundestag (fell below 5% in 2013). Rebuilding phase under Lindner.

Djir-Sarai denied D-Day paper then resigned. Systematic public/private contradictions.

No major corruption. No documented personal enrichment.

Transport underperformed. Digital modest. Economy declined. Wissing left party.

D-Day paper reveals planned deception. Voters punished with sub-5%.

Attacked Grüne Heizungsgesetz after approving it in cabinet — dishonest framing. D-Day paper framed Scholz as aggressor.

Energy targets largely met. Heizungsgesetz delivered but diluted. Some blocked by partners.

Factual opposition. Climate criticism supported by IPCC. No documented false claims.

No documented corruption cases in this period. Lower scandal count.

Opposition — cannot assess delivery. Strong opposition work on climate and civil rights.

Accepted losses, leadership resigned. Transparent about trade-offs.

Criticism of AfD climate denial is evidence-based. Occasionally sharp but sourced. No defamation cases.

As junior partner, limited agenda-setting power. Bürgergeld being reformed toward CDU position. Some SPD priorities (Mindestlohn, Mütterrente) delayed.

Scholz Cum-Ex memory gaps (70% disbelieve). Generally factual on policy but opaque.

No SPD corruption scandals documented. Party donation practices within legal bounds. Supported transparency improvements.

Economy stable pre-COVID. Minimum wage increased. Grundrente implemented. COVID response generally competent.

Accepted junior role after election defeat. Internal party challenge on Bürgergeld (4,000 members) shows democratic vitality.

Junior coalition partner — limited sharp attacks. Focus on policy differences rather than personal defamation.