On September 18, Berlin, Germany, held state elections. See this story about the results. The Green Party boosted its share of the vote from 13% in the last state election, to 18%. As a result, the Green Party is expected to join the ruling state coalition.
The Pirate Party polled over 8% of the vote. The BBC describes it as “little-known”, and says its platform includes greater personal data protection and legalizing marijuana.
8.9% of the vote, 15 seats.
This is a trend, not a fad. Not necessarily for the Pirate Party, but for all third parties.
Whether as a ‘protest vote’ or out of a genuine belief in these third parties…it depends on how well they do now that they have the opportunity, and how much patience voters will have while they learn.