Brandenburg's AfD Party Classification Announcement Issued by the Commission
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Brandenburg has been officially classified as a "confirmed right-wing extremist" organization by the Brandenburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution, according to a 140-page report released in August 2025[1][2][3].
The report outlines the party's consistent anti-democratic activities, xenophobic and racist rhetoric, and advocacy for ethnocultural exclusion, particularly targeting immigrants and Muslims[1][2][3]. The intelligence service's findings indicate a significant increase in violations of democratic principles and human dignity, intensified contacts with other right-wing extremist groups since 2020, and deliberate attempts by key AfD representatives to undermine the German political system[2].
Brandenburg's Interior Minister René Wilke emphasized that the party's actions aim to erode democratic institutions and that legal measures will be used to address these anti-constitutional efforts[3]. The classification enables more effective intelligence operations against the AfD in Brandenburg and may be a preliminary step toward a possible party ban, although a ban is considered a longer-term possibility dependent on continued radicalization[2].
The AfD leadership in Brandenburg strongly criticized the decision, accusing the Office for the Protection of the Constitution of threatening democracy[2]. The Interior Minister described the party's supporter base as having a "fan culture" similar to football fans, creating insular information bubbles and shifting political discourse in a more radical direction[4].
Furthermore, several Brandenburg AfD members, including Jean-Pascal Hohm, have been individually categorized as right-wing extremists, coinciding with the party's plans to found a new youth organization amid fears that the former youth wing was banned due to extremist links[5].
The report was partially redacted before its publication by NIUS, the news portal that leaked the report before its official presentation by Minister Wilke[6]. The term "remigration" is formally "not defined" in the report, but it is believed to refer to the party's controversial stance on immigration and deportation policies[7].
Some terms used by the Brandenburg AfD, such as "old parties," "system," or "party cartel," are open to interpretation[8]. The AfD state parliament faction has announced a press conference for Thursday to publish the classification note[9]. The party continues to appeal against its reclassification as a "confirmed right-wing extremist" case, but an appeal for interim legal protection has been withdrawn to allow the publication of the report[10].
Active or former protagonists of the Institute for State Politics, a right-wing think tank dissolved in Schnellroda, are engaged in or speak on behalf of the Brandenburg state association of the AfD, or both groups network at the Cottbus scene location "Die Mühle"[11]. The AfD state association in Brandenburg is considered particularly radical compared to other associations[12].
The report states that the AfD Brandenburg has undergone a "successive, systematic radicalization"[13]. The party does not recognize the state's people as a community of equal citizens and excludes those with different cultural or religious backgrounds[14]. The party has close connections with the right-wing extremist Compact magazine and the Identitarian Movement (IB)[15].
In a speech in Jüterbog in April 2024, AfD parliamentary group leader Hans-Christoph Berndt stated that the AfD values a close connection with the prefield, including groups like Young Alternative, Compact, One Percent, Institute for State Policy, Pegida, and Future Homeland[16]. The former managing director of the Institute for State Politics, Erik Lehnert, is now the managing director of the Brandenburg AfD state parliament faction[17].
The intelligence service could potentially be its own undoing with the creation of an especially detailed report, as evidence that appears harmless in itself may not alone establish unconstitutionality but can become a piece of a larger mosaic[18]. The report by the Brandenburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution now states that there are "no longer any doubts" that the AfD should be classified as a "securely right-wing extremist" endeavor[19].
[1] https://www.rnd.de/politik/brandenburg-afd-rechts-extremismus-festgestellt-5086.html [2] https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/afd-afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremistisch-ist-sagt-die-verfassungsschutzbehörde/27273620.html [3] https://www.dw.com/en/german-state-classifies-brandenburg-afd-as-right-wing-extremist/a-61244975 [4] https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/afd-brandenburg-101.html [5] https://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/afd-brandenburg-identitaets-bewegung-ib-und-rechts-extremismus-a-6118577.html [6] https://www.wiwo.de/politik/rechts-extremismus/afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremismus-festgestellt-verfassungsschutz-bericht-veroffentlicht/17895262.html [7] https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremismus-festgestellt-5086.html [8] https://www.dw.com/en/german-state-classifies-brandenburg-afd-as-right-wing-extremist/a-61244975 [9] https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremistisch-ist-sagt-die-verfassungsschutzbehörde/27273620.html [10] https://www.dw.com/en/german-state-classifies-brandenburg-afd-as-right-wing-extremist/a-61244975 [11] https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremistisch-ist-sagt-die-verfassungsschutzbehörde/27273620.html [12] https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremistisch-ist-sagt-die-verfassungsschutzbehörde/27273620.html [13] https://www.rnd.de/politik/brandenburg-afd-rechts-extremismus-festgestellt-5086.html [14] https://www.rnd.de/politik/brandenburg-afd-rechts-extremismus-festgestellt-5086.html [15] https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremistisch-ist-sagt-die-verfassungsschutzbehörde/27273620.html [16] https://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/afd-brandenburg-identitaets-bewegung-ib-und-rechts-extremismus-a-6118577.html [17] https://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/afd-brandenburg-identitaets-bewegung-ib-und-rechts-extremismus-a-6118577.html [18] https://www.wiwo.de/politik/rechts-extremismus/afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremismus-festgestellt-verfassungsschutz-bericht-veroffentlicht/17895262.html [19] https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/afd-brandenburg-rechts-extremistisch-ist-sagt-die-verfassungsschutzbehörde/27273620.html
The report on the AfD in Brandenburg, released in August 2025, highlights the party's involvement in war-and-conflicts-related policies and legislation, as it advocates for controversial immigration and deportation policies, known informally as "remigration." The political activities of the AfD, characterized by xenophobic and racist rhetoric, slurs against democratic institutions, and attempts to undermine the German political system, have led to its classification as a "confirmed right-wing extremist" organization. In the realm of policy-and-legislation, general-news, and politics, the AfD's actions have been under intense scrutiny and debate.
