The symbolic power of a snapshot: Between confidence and decay – An election poster as a mirror of reality

The photograph shows a large-scale election poster of Robert Habeck on the side façade of a gray residential building. With a friendly, encouraging gaze, he faces the viewer, flanked by the keyword “CONFIDENCE.” and the slogan “One person. One word.” – messages intended to convey optimism, honesty, and stability. Yet the peeling edges, the visible remnants of old posters underneath, the undersized format in an oversized frame, and the crumbling façade cast the motif in a different light. It is precisely this setting that gives the scene an almost ironic touch: a promise of confidence that struggles to withstand harsh reality.

In retrospect, this impression is reinforced: Robert Habeck seriously aimed to become Chancellor, but in the 2025 federal election, the Greens achieved only 11.6% of the vote – a clear sign that the optimistic claim of the campaign did not resonate – and the real-political effects of Green policies in areas such as energy, economy, and everyday life were often perceived as burdensome, patronizing, and completely detached from reality. Equally detached from reality was Robert Habeck’s dream of leading Germany as a “coalition chancellor,” having once written: “Patriotism, love of the fatherland, I always found disgusting. I didn’t know what to do with Germany and still don’t.”*

Those who cannot make sense of something might better not feel called upon to take responsibility for it.

*Robert Habeck, Patriotism: a leftist plea, Gütersloher Verlagshaus, Gütersloh, 2010, ISBN 978-3-579-06874-9