Victimhood claims in German political manifestos

Abstract Political campaigns often work with victimhood claims—stories construed around an (alleged) injustice that needs to be redressed or retaliated against. Notably, scholars have argued that victimhood claims have become more important in societal discourses over the last 20 years. In this research, we investigate the prevalence of victimhood claims (and a potential increase) in political election and party programs. More specifically, we analyzed programs from German Federal Parliament Elections between 2002 and 2021. Analyzing 157 documents from 69 parties, we show that (a) the number of victimhood claims has increased in parties represented in the Federal Parliament, and (b) that parties at the left and right fringes of the political spectrum employ victimhood claims more frequently than parties of the political center. We discuss these results with regard to the role that victimhood claims play in political campaigns and what consequences an increased prevalence of victimhood claims entails.