The AfD party conference in Riesa ended in a dispute and thus with the first setback for the new leadership duo Weidel/Chrupalla. According to many, there was a secret winner: Björn Höcke.
After the conflict-ridden federal party conference of the AfD, AfD honorary chairman Alexander Gauland called his party to order. The AfD must “deliver when fighting political opponents instead of fighting its own people,” he told the “Rheinische Post” on Monday. The newly elected co-party leader Alice Weidel admitted to having suffered defeats at the party congress in Riesa.
According to a spokesman, there has not yet been a date for the constitution of the newly elected, far-right executive board. Gauland warned his party: “It is important to finally put the issues that move people back at the center of our work. And not the argument.”
The AfD federal party conference ended prematurely on Sunday after violent conflicts on the open stage. A resolution on European policy, which was presented by AfD right-wing extremist Björn Höcke, among others, revealed deep rifts, especially between the party’s eastern and western associations.
After a voting marathon, during which the new top duo of Weidel and Tino Chrupalla was able to push through with difficulty, the bill was referred to the federal executive board. According to a party spokesman on Monday, it was still unclear when he would deal with the controversial bill. A referral is no longer expected in June.
Thuringia’s Interior Minister Georg Maier (SPD) sees the Thuringian AfD boss Höcke strengthened after the AfD federal party conference. “This is an internal party overthrow in installments,” he told the editorial network Germany (Monday editions). “Höcke drives the party and the chairmen ahead of him with his motions. It is only a matter of time before he completely dominates the party.” In Thuringia, this process has already been completed. “The AfD is clearly a right-wing extremist Höcke party here.”
AfD boss Weidel denied on ARD that her party had an extremism problem: “We have no problem with right-wing extremists,” she said. However, she added, restrictively: “You also have people in other parties who have an extremist past or who are severely extremist.”
