You're not wrong, but you're giving right-wing populists too much credit. Their polling numbers are not just a product of their own efforts, but equally so the result of

• outside interference: Russia is probably one of the most prominent actors in this sector, linked to both interference in U.S. elections (on behalf of Trump), in the Brexit referendum (on behalf of the Leave campaign), in the latest Romanian election, and so many more. But technofascists like Thiel and Musk are equally getting involved, endorsing, hosting and probably bankrolling candidates they see as conducive to giving even more power to oligarchs. Cf. Musk hosting and endorsing Alice Weidel (AfD GER) and Tommy Robinson recently at the London rallye, and Thiel essentially funding JD Vance's entire political career.
• the abandonment of the working and middle class by the political elites: hear me out, I'm not just parrotting a right-wing talking point here. If you look at the development of both income and wealth inequality in the last few decades, you'll see that there is some truth to it. Governments from left to right have had a much more open ear to the interests of corporations and billionaires - after all, that's where all that sweet, sweet campaign money comes from, as well as the career for their lives after politics. Meanwhile, ordinary people have been struggling from crisis to crisis: from dotcom bubble to subprime meltdown, from the Euro crisis into a global pandemic, and from there into two severe energy shocks ('22 and '26). And it turns out that bailing out banks while dishing out austerity, shutting down the country and remaining mostly inactive in the face of rising inequality and inflation isn't exactly the way to win the trust of the public. That said, the far right posing as an "alternative" to failed mainstream politics is a joke, obviously: as laid out above, they are mostly bankrolled by the very elites that are responsible for people's struggles. They are here to shift the blame onto marginalised groups and give even the lower classes somebody to look down and vent their anger on. If you look at their agenda, their plan is to open the floodgates even more to the money elites, slash taxes and regulations and funnel government spending towards oligarch-owned monopolies. (The rampant corruption under Trump II bears ample testimony to that.)

So, yes, the far right has been busy in the recent past. But they wouldn't have come this far if it weren't for fascists with money supporting them and mainstream politics failing people left and right.

To me, I think they have spent years and years coordinating (not just in Germany) with other right-wing parties, tried and tested propaganda mechanics, nailed the language, the target audience, sold the product properly and their target audience responded.

Which is what any party should do, they did nothing new or strange, they simply listen to the people and offered solutions (which would not necessary work or be realizable) occupying a space other parties decided to abandon.

I can't verify this, so take it as gossip, but a person who tried to organized a unified voice for a similar issue against AfD at a townhall meeting once, told me that when they entered a meeting, a cop came up to them, told that they need to ask them some questions regarding the safety of the meeting, and he was held there for long enough so they couldn't properly attend the meeting, so afd person told their speech unapposed.
Again, I don't know details, how legal it is, or anything, take it with a grain of salt. But in my heart of hearts I kinda believe that

My wife and I have had recent incidents nearly identical to this in NL.

First of all, thanks for going to the meeting and opposing those Nazis.

Nobody seems to give a fuck about the disenfranchised except the AfD.

I know this is what you meant too, but I think it's important to emphasise this: They seem to give a fuck. In reality they are just as bad, if not worse than the other major parties when it comes to actually supporting them.

Why are you repeating bullshit right-wing talking points here that have nothing to do with reality?

Wow, quite a bit...

The lefty parties want a good life for everyone not just wellfare or immigrants.

If the unemployed are living that well the logical conclusion would be to become unemployed right?

Without the firewall the afd would still blame the other parties till they have the majority...

No I cant understand the voters, history proved time and time again that living in a fascist regime sucks for nearly everyone sooner or later. The C*U and SPD already doubled the amount of immigrants that are getting deported. The amount of immigration is falling for years. The rich are getting richer but sure the problem are the poor...immigrants cost around 7 billions(https://www.bpb.de/themen/migration-integration/zahlen-zu-asyl/265776/asylbedingte-kosten-und-ausgaben/) Bürgergeld is around 50 billions ( https://www.buerger-geld.org/news/buergergeld/buergergeld-rekord-fuer-wen-in-deutschland-was-gezahlt-wird-und-warum-die-kosten-2025-explodieren/) the richest german is worth 47 billions. He nearly doubled his worth in the last five years from 30 billions in 2020 (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_der_reichsten_Deutschen_(Manager_Magazin))

Leaving all the fascist stuff aside...how would any of the AfD policies help the middle class? You say

centrist parties cherish companies

which is true...but have you had a look at AfD policies? Now that's what I call "cherish companies".

They have convinced the poor to blame the even poorer. As long as you have someone to look down to...

No. Those Nazi fucks use crazy brainwashing propaganda, likely funded by Russia. There's no logic to see here. The AfD keeps telling lies, which are so painfully obvious to anyone who can still think for themselves. It is also painfully obvious that their only goal is to get rich and powerful. That's it. Anyone voting for the AfD is either a disgusting Nazi (as in full blown, Hitler loving Nazi) or brainwashed to believe the lies.

AfDs solution was back to traditional values, which isnt good but better than whatever bullshit we have now.

Germany tried the far right and in the end the country was bombed to shit and divided. I much rather have Merz gutting the social system, then that bullshit.

But yes, Germany needs to really help the middle class a lot more. Taxes on work are among the highest in the OECD. So cutting that would help a lot. Also the tax for buying real estate. So people buy their homes and not rent all the time. But helping the weakest in society is a case of all boats rise with the tide.

Schrodinger's Fuhrer: either a socialist/communist or 'had some good ideas'. The waveform will only be collapsed when the bootlicker finds out the political leanings of who they're talking to.

It's always "funny" when you know what happened to the socialist branch of the Nazi party, also that they admitted pretty openly that they lied and used socialist symbols only to attract the working class

In gaming, sure.

But Nazis/the AfD don't care about balance or good experience. The leaders only care about enriching themselves. So them still glorifying the losing Russia is just another sign of them being influenced by Putin.