New debate about AfD ban: Wüst wants to have the AfD ban examined

dpa/taz | After the AfD's election success in Saxony-Anhalt, a new debate begins about banning the right-wing extremist party. NRW Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst (CDU) is calling for a federal-state working group on the constitutional handling of the AfD and possible consequences. Meanwhile, the journalist Michel Friedman renewed his call for a ban on the AfD.

On Monday evening, Wüst spoke to the political economist Maja Göpel about a possible AfD ban during the “Misunderstand me correctly” panel. According to media reports, he brought the working group into discussion and emphasized: "I said something today that I don't think any CDU person has said publicly before: that I am in favor of setting up this working group that will then do this work."

If after an examination it is on the table that the AfD can be banned, Wüst is further quoted, then this ban procedure should be initiated. However, this cannot be implemented quickly.

“I warn against taking quick action when banning the AfD, because banning a political party can only be the last resort if we want to protect our constitution,” Wüst told the dpa news agency on Tuesday.

From the point of view of the NRW head of government, the working group should include the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, but also constitutional lawyers and other experts from the federal and state governments. “The overall question is how the state deals constitutionally with a party that pursues anti-constitutional goals, at least in individual federal states,” said the CDU politician.

In fact, there are a number of CDU politicians who have been campaigning for a ban on the AfD for a long time. One was the journalist Michel Friedman, who left the party in January 2025 because the Union had relied on the AfD's votes in the Bundestag for a proposal for a stricter migration policy.

Friedman supported his call for a ban on the AfD on Tuesday on the Phoenix TV station - precisely because the AfD has now become so strong. If the party was only at 5 or 10 percent, he would be against it, said Friedman. "The party must be able to develop a position of power that, coupled with the constitution, which it wants to destroy, and its willingness to use violence, which can be proven, enables an application. And that would be the case now at the latest."

The Basic Law is one of the most beautiful books ever, said Friedman. And in it, based on the lessons of National Socialism, “the question of a ban procedure was explicitly written into the constitution”.

Therefore, individual people could also be deprived of their right to vote. "Mr. Höcke is a fascist. Why should he still have active and passive voting rights?" said Friedman, referring to the Thuringian AfD politician Björn Höcke.

The AfD is being monitored nationwide by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution as a suspected case. Individual state associations – including Saxony-Anhalt – are classified as definitely right-wing extremist by the respective state Office for the Protection of the Constitution.