Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla have been confirmed as the chairpersons of the AfD. During the party convention in Erfurt, Weidel secured re-election with 81.3 percent, while Chrupalla achieved 70.1 percent.
While Weidel saw a slight increase in support compared to the board election held in Essen two years prior, Chrupalla lost ground. At the last election in 2024, Weidel had garnered around 80 percent, and Chrupalla had been at 83 percent. In both instances, they faced no challengers.
The party leadership reportedly attempted to minimize controversy at the convention. Consequently, the focus was almost entirely placed on elections for various committees. A potentially significant point of contention was smoothed over early on: a motion to revise the party’s incompatibility list, supported among others by Thuringian AfD chief Björn Höcke, was ultimately not put to a vote despite the motion’s proponents, being transferred instead to the newly elected board.
Generally, the AfD intends to use the Erfurt convention to position itself regarding potential governmental responsibility in the East following the autumn elections. On Saturday before her vote, Weidel stated that the AfD is “the new people’s party in Germany.” She noted that the party membership has grown from 30,000 to 75,000 within three years, and predicted that they would “soon and very quickly break 100,000,” asserting that they are ready to assume responsibility.
