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topicnews · September 6, 2024

ARD “Deutschlandtrend”: Large majority supports fundamental change in asylum policy

ARD “Deutschlandtrend”: Large majority supports fundamental change in asylum policy

A majority of Germans want a change in asylum and refugee policy. This is according to the ARDGermany trend Three out of four Germans (77 percent of respondents) are of the opinion that a fundamental change is necessary in this area. According to a survey, 18 percent think this is unnecessary.

Among AfD supporters, 97 percent want a fundamentally different solution Asylum policy. In the Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) coalition, the figure is 91 percent and in the Union, 86 percent. Among SPD supporters, 65 percent, or almost two-thirds, are in favor of such a change. Among the Greens, 48 ​​percent agreed, 46 percent did not. What exactly is meant by a “fundamental change” was not explained in more detail.

According to the survey, the issues of immigration and flight have continued to rise in the perception of problems among Germans. According to the data, almost one in two people (48 percent) in Germany name the issues as one of the two most important political problems that German politics must urgently address. In April, the figure was 22 percent lower. The traffic light government and the opposition are currently negotiating some tougher regulations in migration and security policy.

After the fatal knife attack in Solingen at the end of August that left three people dead, 82 percent believe that it would be useful to expand prevention and education about radical Islamism, for example in schools and refugee facilities. 73 percent are in favor of introducing permanent controls at German borders. 72 percent are also in favor of giving security authorities more powers.

Infratest dimap surveyed 1,309 eligible voters for the poll from Tuesday to Wednesday of this week. The statistical margin of error was given as plus/minus two to three percentage points.

On the uncertainties of surveys

Representative polls are always subject to errors. It can be assumed that the actual value is very likely to be in a range of one to three points above or below the percentage values ​​ultimately given. We will now show the corridor of this statistical error in our graphics on election polls.

The results are always based on sample surveys. These usually only cover specific parts of the population (for example, people with landline telephone connections or Internet users). Some potential participants are stumped and do not want to be interviewed in the first place. Questions are sometimes misunderstood and not always answered correctly. For example, in response to previous surveys. However, in order to calculate a general picture of opinion across all population groups, the pollsters have to compensate for missing measurements and suspected inaccuracies and re-weight the available figures. These (usually non-transparent) formulas differ between institutes and therefore lead to different statements.

Poll results are always snapshots. They cannot be used to derive more than a rough tendency for an opinion. Even if the statements and calculations at the time the poll is published are close to reality, it is still unclear whether the voters surveyed at the time will actually cast their vote later or whether they will change their minds at short notice.