German conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz appears poised to win the country’s election Sunday, while the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party places second despite making

The far-right group has learned to communicate in a country where traditional media no longer shape public opinion.

The AfD group in the Bundestag on Tuesday voted to accept Matthias Helferich, who is so divisive that officials from his own regional association attempted to expel him, alleging he referred to Germans descended from migrants as “beasts”.

There is a determination among all of Germany's main parties to keep that block in place - and the German public backs them up: 69% see the AfD as a threat to democracy, according