The right-wing Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) could join the third largest grouping in the European Parliament, Patriots for Europe (PfE), after the German national elections on February 23rd, according to Euronews, who spoke to sources within the Patriots.
Alice Weidel, the co-leader of the AfD recently had talks with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán whose party, Fidesz, belongs to the Patriots group.
The rumoured negotiations are a clear signal that the AfD, which is expected to finish second in the German elections with a result of 20-22%, is being embraced by patriotic-sovereignist forces after a period of isolation.
Orbán said that the AfD was the “future of Germany,” and emphasised the importance of engaging with political forces that challenge the European mainstream. U.S. billionaire Elon Musk—now a governmental advisor in U.S. President Donald Trump’s cabinet—also endorsed the party as the only force that “can save Germany.”
With its opposition to illegal immigration and radical climate policies, the party has been vilified by Germany’s ruling left-liberal elite, which has used the full force of the state, including spying on the party and spreading disinformation, to try and undermine the credibility of its main political rival.
The AfD used to belong to the predecessor of Patriots for Europe, Identity and Democracy (ID) but was kicked out last year after their lead candidate Maximilian Krah made statements seemingly relativizing the crimes of the SS in Nazi Germany. Krah himself was expelled from the AfD’s delegation in the European Parliament following the European elections last June.
Since then, the party has formed a separate right-wing group, Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN), together with, among others, Polish Konfederacja, Bulgarian Revival, and Slovakian Republika.
Euronews, however, writes that the idea of AfD rejoining the Patriots “is making the rounds within the group but that there is currently no schedule for talks.”
Spanish Patriots MEP Hermann Tertsch said, “There is a clear and unstoppable path to unity among conservative, patriotic, and sovereignist forces,” and many of the reservations with regard to the AfD “no longer exist.”
An MEP from Marine Le Pen’s National Rally, which was the most insistent on the AfD leaving the ID group last year, said, “There’s still a blockage with the AfD,” and if the party “wants to exercise political responsibilities in Germany and the EU, it must clean up its own ranks.”
Speaking to europeanconservative.com, René Aust, the head of the AfD’s delegation to the European Parliament, dismissed rumours about the party’s impending move to the Patriots group:
The most important currency in politics is loyalty, and it is proven in difficult times. Our partners trusted us during a challenging period last summer and remained loyal to us. There is absolutely no doubt that we will continue this ESN with full loyalty, enthusiasm and joy, leading it to success.
The AfD has 14 MEPs in the ESN group, meaning they would increase the number of lawmakers in the Patriots group to 100 if they were to join, significantly expanding the PfE’s weight in the European Parliament.
The largest group is the centrist European People’s Party with 188 MEPs, followed by the Socialists with 136 lawmakers.
