"Berlin's Madani" on the way to power, with supporters who want a "Palestinian Tel Aviv"

The far-left party "Die Linke" is expected to win the Berlin elections this Sunday with 20.6% support. At its head is Elif Aralap, a daughter of Turkish immigrants, dubbed "Berlin's Madani." The campaign focuses on housing and cost of living, but the party faces antisemitic and anti-Israel sentiments among its supporters, including justification of the October 7 massacre.

The far-left party "Die Linke" is expected to win the Berlin elections this Sunday with 20.6% support in polls—a massive improvement from 8.4% in the previous elections. At its head is Elif Aralap, 45, a daughter of Turkish immigrants, a legal expert who worked at the UN on migration and discrimination issues. Aralap is called "Berlin's Madani," after the Muslim mayor of New York, and her campaign slogan is "From New York to Berlin, the left returns." The campaign focuses on the housing crisis and cost of living, promising to nationalize about a quarter million apartments. However, under Aralap, the antisemitic and anti-Israel tone within the party has intensified, especially among young people. Aralap distances herself from antisemitism and calls of "death to the IDF," but relies on the support of the Muslim vote and anti-Israel youth. In a recorded meeting of the party's Palestine solidarity group, proponents of a motion justified the October 7 massacre as an "act of resistance" rather than terrorism. The motion was ultimately rejected and contradicts the official stance of the party leadership.