Green parliamentary group leaders are calling for an AfD ban procedure to be examined

Chairmen of the Green party groups from the federal and state governments have spoken out in favor of examining an AfD ban procedure. The Greens have no doubt about the danger posed by the AfD, said Bundestag parliamentary group leader Britta Haßelmann in Düsseldorf. It is therefore necessary for one of the three constitutional bodies - the Bundestag, the Bundesrat or the federal government - to take action. The Greens have been trying to trigger such an initiative in the Bundestag for almost a year.

The proposal from North Rhine-Westphalia Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst (CDU) to set up a federal-state working group to examine the constitutional handling of the AfD was also the subject of consideration, said Haßelmann.

The AfD is being monitored nationwide by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution as a suspected case. Individual state associations are classified as definitely right-wing extremist by the respective state Office for the Protection of the Constitution. Only the Bundestag, the Bundesrat or the Federal Government can submit an application for a party ban to the Federal Constitutional Court. Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) expressed skepticism about the chances of success of a possible AfD ban procedure.

Other steps are also possible

The Saxon Green Party parliamentary group leader Franziska Schubert referred to the change in political culture in countries such as Saxony-Anhalt and Saxony due to the AfD, which is strong there. “It is high time for this test procedure to get underway,” said Schubert.

Until then, there are also other steps. In this way, it could be checked whether people in public service are based on the basic democratic order. There is also the question of financing foundations and parties “that are demonstrably working to completely change the free-democratic basic order.” Above all, the federal government's "tinkering" with reforms must come to an end, said Schubert. The problems that motivated voters to vote for the AfD would have to be solved.

The chairmen of the Green parliamentary groups from the states, the federal government and Europe exchanged views on current political issues for two days in Duisburg and Düsseldorf.