Abstract

Like countries, regions within countries face the challenges of demographic change to varying degrees. In order to cushion the consequences of demographic change, they compete internationally and nationally for the influx of workers. At the same time, there has been a sharp rise in right-wing populist and right-wing extremist movements in most European countries in recent years. When right-wing extremist attitudes send a pepelling signal to potential immigrants, they hinder socially and economically desirable immigration. There are also large regional differences within countries when it comes to support for right-wing radical attitudes. Below the state level, however, there is currently no information on the effect of such regional differences on mobility behavior. Using Germany as an example, we examine the effects of hostile attitudes, measured by xenophobic violence and election results in a region, on its migration balance. Our focus is on migration from abroad as well as on the internal migration behavior of Germans and non-Germans.