AfD withdraws urgent motion: The Office for the Protection of the Constitution remains in charge!

AfD withdraws urgent motion: The Office for the Protection of the Constitution remains in charge!

In a current turn of events regarding the right-wing extremist classification of the AfD in Brandenburg, the party has withdrawn its urgent application against the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution's decision. This decision was made after an internal meeting on Tuesday evening RBB24 reported. The AfD was classified as “secure right-wing extremist” in May, but publication of this classification has not yet been possible due to the AfD’s legal steps. The AfD state chairman Rene Springer called on Interior Minister René Wilke to make the classification decision public, which he sees as politically exploited.

What even happened? The Brandenburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution initially classified the AfD as a suspected case before finally classifying it as a confirmed right-wing extremist status. The AfD has already been classified as right-wing extremist in other federal states such as Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. Interior Minister Wilke advised the party that its own legal actions had hindered the publication of the classification.

The ongoing proceedings

While the legal classification as a suspected case is now legally binding, the process for upgrading it to “certain right-wing extremist” is still not completed. This also confirmed daily news, which reported that the AfD's non-admission appeal before the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig failed. The Higher Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia decided in May 2024 that the Office for the Protection of the Constitution was allowed to classify the AfD as a suspected right-wing extremist case because it pursues activities that are directed against the human dignity of certain groups and the principle of democracy.

The debate about upgrading the AfD was initiated on May 2, 2025, when the first urgent applications were received by the administrative court in Cologne. Experts estimate that it could take several years before a final decision regarding the classification as “secured extremist” is made.

Right-wing extremism in numbers

Concerns about the growing potential of right-wing extremism in Germany are supported by current figures from the Office for the Protection of the Constitution. At the end of 2024, over 50,000 people were active in right-wing extremism in Germany, over 15,000 of whom are considered violence-oriented. An alarming increase of over 47% was recorded in the area of ​​right-wing extremist crimes in 2024, with a total of 37,835 crimes, with propaganda crimes being the most common category ( Protection of the Constitution ).

• Rechtsextremistisches Potenzial in Parteien: 25.000 Personen (2024)
• Gewaltorientierte Rechtsextremisten: 15.300 Personen (2024)
• Propagandadelikte: 24.177 (63,9% der Straftaten)
• Gewalttaten: 1.281 (Anstieg um 11,6% von 2023)

It is clear to see that right-wing extremist efforts are not only growing, but are also becoming more socially relevant. The right-wing extremist scene has now organized itself into different groups and structures, which only increases the challenge for the security authorities.

Overall, the situation remains tense and it is clear that the Office for the Protection of the Constitution is required to continue to actively monitor and act in order to protect democracy and counter right-wing extremist tendencies.