In China, 阿丽丝-魏德尔 (Ālìsī Wèidé’ěr) is a star. „My uncle called me the other day and excitedly asked if she would be Germany’s new chancellor,“ says a Chinese IT student in Berlin, who does not want her name to be published and wants to be called Maxine Zhou here. „She perfectly fits the nationalistic and strict image of a politician, which is one of the favorite types of conservative Chinese.“ In fact, the election frontrunner for the far-right AfD is often called 铁娘子 (tieniangzi) „Iron Lady“ in China. However, this term is used excessively – even Angela Merkel is sometimes referred to in this way. „I think there is a fascination with the ‘Iron Lady’ in China because this type of woman was always praised in communist propaganda,“ says Maxine Zhou.