Political tensions in Germany are escalating ahead of the right-wing opposition Alternative für Deutschland’s (AfD) federal party congress in Erfurt next month, with Green Party and Die Linke officials, as well as trade union Ver.di, openly encouraging members to join mass protests that are intended to prevent the gathering from taking place.
Several groups have pledged to mobilise thousands of demonstrators, while police prepare what is expected to be the largest security operation in Thuringia’s history.
The far-left activist group Widersetzen (Resist) is planning large-scale demonstrations and civil disobedience actions during the AfD congress, scheduled for July 4–5 at the Erfurt exhibition centre. The group says it hopes to mobilise tens of thousands of activists to block access roads and disrupt the event through mass sit-ins and coordinated protests.
Ver.di’s North Rhine-Westphalia branch has also announced that it will reimburse members’ travel costs to Erfurt. The union says its “commitment to democracy” extends beyond the workplace.
Germany’s far-left party, Die Linke, has backed the mobilisation. The party’s parliamentary group leader, Heidi Reichinnek, accused the AfD and its supporters of “posing a danger to democracy.”
The Cologne branch of the Greens has also circulated a newsletter urging members to travel to Erfurt. According to the message, several buses will depart from Cologne “to send a signal: prevent the AfD federal party congress—stop Höcke,” referring to AfD’s Thuringia leader, Björn Höcke.
The move has drawn criticism from within the party itself. In a post on X, Green Party member Carsten Brennecke wrote:
My party, the Greens, is organising buses to prevent the AfD party congress. I am ashamed.
He argued that “a party that calls itself the guardian of democracy is calling for another party’s federal congress to be made impossible,” adding that “whoever actively prevents a party congress risks criminal liability.”
Conservative commentators have condemned the involvement of established organisations.
Journalist Roland Tichy wrote on X that “the Green ‘protectors of democracy’ are organising buses for the destruction of democracy.”
AfD politician Michael Immel wrote:
Democracy thrives on diversity of opinion and the right of all parties to assemble freely. We will continue to fight for our country and for genuine democratic freedoms.
The scale of the expected protests has prompted what Thuringian police describe as the largest security operation in the state’s history. Around 6,000 officers from across Germany are expected to be deployed, with internal police assessments reportedly anticipating up to 35,000 counter-demonstrators and around 1,000 potentially violent left-wing extremists.
The Widersetzen alliance has insisted that its actions will remain peaceful. However, previous anti-AfD demonstrations have resulted in clashes with police and violence. Protesters clashed with police at the AfD’s congress in Essen in 2024, at the launch of the party’s new youth wing in Giessen in 2025. The congress of the AfD’s Baden-Württemberg branch was cancelled in 2022 due to threats of violence from left-wing extremists.
