Tens of Thousands March in Germany to Oppose Far-Right AfD

Approximately 150,000 people took to the streets across roughly 20 German cities on Saturday to demonstrate against the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. The massive turnout followed a significant electoral victory for the far-right group in last week’s state elections.

The AfD secured the top spot in Saxony-Anhalt and is currently pursuing the formation of the first extreme-right state government in Germany since the end of World War II. In the Sunday vote, the anti-immigration and Russia-friendly party captured nearly 44 percent of the ballots, significantly outperforming the center-right CDU, which received 17 percent. Although the AfD fell three seats short of an absolute majority, it has initiated talks with other political groups and independent members of parliament to establish a state administration.

Organizers stated that the protests were coordinated by Pruef, a campaign group advocating for a ban on the AfD. Demonstrators in major cities including Berlin, Hamburg, and Munich carried signs with messages such as “Ban the AfD now” and “Democracy needs no alternatives.” According to Campact, another involved organization, about 25,000 people assembled in Hamburg and 12,000 in Munich, while Berlin police reported several thousand participants in various rallies.

Christoph Bautz, who leads Campact, emphasized the breadth of opposition, noting that “a broad cross-section of civil society is taking to the streets to prevent the enemies of the constitution, the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt, from gaining government power.”

The rising influence of the AfD has unsettled many citizens who feel a profound duty to atone for Germany’s Nazi past. Consequently, demands for mainstream political parties to pursue a legal ban on the organization have intensified. However, the legal threshold for such a prohibition remains high in Germany, and Chancellor Friedrich Merz of the CDU has expressed skepticism regarding this strategy.

Meanwhile, the AfD held a counter-demonstration in the capital, featuring Kristin Brinker, the party’s lead candidate for the upcoming regional elections in Berlin scheduled for next weekend.