The far-right political party Alternative for Germany (AfD) suffered a significant blow. Its attempts to win a mayoral office in Germany’s deeply urban, economic powerhouse neighbor have crashed against a wall. In fact, German security services previously classified the party as an ‘extremist’ organization. It lost out to victory in a recent run-off election despite efforts to move beyond its stronghold in rural areas.
As reported in the Guardian, that designation as an extremist party comes from a lengthy, 1,100-page report submitted by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency. This report focuses on the party’s inflammatory and racist and Islamophobic rhetoric which has led to national and international condemnation. Brandenburg leaders have articulated concerns over the AfD’s apparent contempt for government institutions, further complicating its legitimacy in the eyes of many voters.
Wilfried Peters, the state’s domestic intelligence chief, described the situation within the party as alarming. He said that AfD is at the forefront of pushing for the “discrimination and exclusion” of those who are not part of the “German mainstream.” This characterization has only served to underscore the continuing debate and discussion over the party’s place in German politics and society.
In response to its classification as an extremist group, the AfD has initiated a legal challenge against the intelligence service’s designation. The matter became controversial when this classification was denounced by U.S Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who called it “tyranny in disguise.” In his op-ed, he called on German authorities to rethink their position. Germany acted fast. In doing so, they called on officials in Washington to look beyond the present-day contexts to understand the full impact of these designations.
The political climate surrounding the rise of the AfD has become increasingly heated. Two of its legislators are now under serious indictment, leading the Bundestag to raise their parliamentary immunity. One lawmaker was accused of defamation, while another faced charges for making a Nazi salute, an act strictly prohibited under German law.
Cognizant of these controversies, the AfD has continued to make significant inroads in local governance. Far-right politician Robert Sesselmann is already in office as district administrator of Sonneberg, Thuringia. The party has still managed to elect mayors in dozens of small towns in the micro eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt. The AfD’s recent success in producing a mayoral election win was hailed as a turning point. Collectively, they thought it sent “a very strong signal” regarding their capacity to succeed on urban politics’ most competitive and challenging turf.
This more recent challenge for the AfD is exacerbated by the ever-present public outcry over their perverted policies and activities. The German Federal Foreign Office recently released a statement underscoring the necessity of combating right-wing extremism, saying, “We have learnt from our history that right-wing extremism needs to be stopped.”
As the party continues to fight its legal cases and changing public sentiment, its future is very much up in the air. The recent mayoral election loss marks a pivotal moment for the AfD and its ambitions to gain traction in larger cities across Germany.
