The Euro crisis in 2009 and then the influx of refugees to the European borders in 2015 cause economic and security concerns in the European society. The serious problems created by the crises in the social and economic fields also affect the political field. Confidence in the ruling neo-liberal centrist parties decreases among the voters who turn to new political pursuits. Turning the negative atmosphere that creates discomfort on the European society into an opportunity, the far-right parties significantly increase the public support with the populist rhetoric they build on ethnic, cultural and religious affiliations. The far-right parties, which follow an effective political communication strategy in order to make their ideology and policies visible to the public, have an impact on voter behavior with the propaganda posters they use in their election campaigns. In developed Western European countries where the political poster culture is vigorously maintained, especially in Germany with the largest immigrant population, the ethnic and cultural minorities, whose number is increasing day by day in the country with the mass migration, become the main argument of far-right populist propaganda. When evaluated in this context, the propaganda posters used by the "Alternative Party for Germany (AfD)", one of Germany's leading far-right parties, draw attention. Developing an anti-foreign and anti-immigrant discourse through the representations of 'women' on election posters, the AfD emphasizes the German identity and culture. It strengthens its own ideological discourse by making ethnic, religious and cultural discrimination over women. This study deals with the propaganda posters selected with the purposeful sampling model in terms of graphic form and content, focusing on the ideological discourse built on the "image of woman", which the Alternative Party for Germany frequently resorts to in election posters.
Keywords: Propaganda posters, poster design, the image of women, migration, xenophobia, election campaign