Irene Mihalic, the Green parliamentary group leader, has urged the CDU/CSU Union to join an initiative aimed at initiating a ban procedure against the AfD. Mihalic noted that despite her calls for a joint federal initiation to address the AfD, the Union leadership at the national level has remained unresponsive for over a year, as reported to the “Rheinische Post.”
She expressed satisfaction that some parts of the Union within the various states are starting to recognize the necessity of acting decisively as democratic forces, suggesting this increased awareness makes a federal initiative more likely. However, Mihalic insisted that the Union must also cease “hiding” at the federal level.
The Green politician pointed to Thorsten Frei, the CDU parliamentary group leader, mentioning that he had already brought up the concept of federal coercion concerning Saxony-Anhalt. Such an instrument, she explained, allows a federal state to be compelled to fulfill its obligations if it refuses to follow the Basic Law or other federal laws. Mihalic suggested that Frei himself seems to anticipate unconstitutional behavior from the AfD, raising the question of why the CDU/CSU is not actively seeking a review of the AfD’s constitutionality through the Federal Constitutional Court.
Mihalic characterized the AfD as “not a party like any other, but a far-right force that directly attacks our democracy and its principles,” and warned that further procrastination on the issue would be “negligent.”
For context, Article 21 of the Basic Law stipulates that any party whose goals or the conduct of its members aim to impair or abolish the free democratic basic order, or endanger the existence of the Federal Republic of Germany, is unconstitutional. While the Federal Constitutional Court makes the final decision on constitutionality, the court cannot act unilaterally; it requires a mandate from the Bundestag, Bundesrat, or the Federal Government.
