The far-right Alternative for Germany party re-elected its two leaders on Saturday after making headway in recent European elections, but thousands protested at a party conference, with some demonstrators trying to block roads and clashing with police.
Despite recent scandals and setbacks, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) came in second in the June 9 European Parliament elections with 15.9 percent of the vote. While this is lower than its support in surveys earlier this year, its particularly strong performance in the former Communist east gives it a good chance of being the front-runner in three state elections there in September.
At the party’s two-day regular conference in the western city of Essen, co-chairs Alice Weidel and Tino Krupalla were elected unopposed to new two-year terms, winning 79.8% and 82.7% of delegates respectively – a harmonious result by the party’s often-contentious standards.
Weidel vowed to work to “break down the unspeakable so-called firewalls” that other parties had set up to prevent cooperation with the AfD.
Police presence was heavy in Essen. Local authorities tried to stop the AfD rally but lost in court. German news agency DPA reported that local authorities estimated that around 20,000 people demonstrated during the rally, with several thousand more taking part in other protests.
Police used pepper spray and batons to push back a group of protesters who tried to break through barricades early Saturday morning. Police said masked protesters attacked officers and made “several” arrests.
Protesters staged sit-ins on roads and at intersections near the convention site.
“What’s going on has nothing to do with democracy,” Weidel told delegates at the start of the conference. “We are here and we’re here to stay.”
Recent setbacks for the AfD include the party’s top two candidates being pulled from the campaign trail due to scandals and its ouster from the party leadership. Far-right groups in the European Parliament.
Mr Kulpala said he “could have gotten 20%” of the European vote and complained that the coverage of the two candidates was “unfair and disproportionate”, but he also acknowledged that “some people have behaved carelessly and unprofessional and have unnecessarily given themselves ammunition”.
“So then we are two steps forward and one step back, but in future we have to take three steps forward,” he added, arguing that the party needs to vet candidates more closely.
