A German court has ruled that the 2024 Saarbrücken city council election result is invalid and must be repeated, following a legal challenge brought by a member of Alternative für Deutschland (AfD). The Higher Administrative Court of the Saarland found that the party’s exclusion from the election was unlawful.
The dispute arose after election officials barred the AfD from running, arguing that the party had submitted two competing candidate lists, which was considered a violation of electoral rules prohibiting multiple nominations. Authorities therefore declared the party’s submissions invalid in full.
However, the plaintiff argued that only one valid list ultimately existed, as the original proposal had been withdrawn in time following a party assembly decision in February 2024. The court accepted this interpretation, stating that the withdrawal had been legally effective and that the second list should have been considered valid.
In its ruling, the Higher Administrative Court emphasized the importance of party autonomy under Article 21 of Germany’s Basic Law. It stated that electoral regulations must be interpreted in line with constitutional principles, including the ability of political parties to organise and correct their nominations in accordance with internal democratic decisions.
The court concluded that the exclusion of the AfD constituted an unlawful restriction on participation, making the election result void. The State Administration Office has now been instructed to organise a repeat election, with a new date yet to be announced.
