Guest post by Gina Tedesca
Germany’s political battle over the AfD’s historic victory in Saxony-Anhalt is going international. After the party won 43.8% of the vote, Chancellor Friedrich Merz raised the possibility of using an extraordinary federal power against a future AfD-led state government. Now European lawmakers from five countries are asking the United Nations to scrutinize the move.
The pressure on Merz is growing on several fronts. The AfD parliamentary group has also filed a criminal complaint against the Chancellor after he described the party’s “remigration” policy as “nothing other than ethnic cleansing based on skin color and origin.”
The international effort was initiated by German AfD MEP Petr Bystron, who argues that Berlin’s response to the election raises fundamental questions about the treatment of democratic opposition in Germany.
AfD Wins — Merz Raises “Federal Coercion”
The AfD won 43.8% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt, with turnout approaching 80%.
Following the election, Merz raised the possibility of invoking Article 37 of Germany’s Basic Law, known as “Bundeszwang,” or federal coercion.
The provision allows the federal government, under strict constitutional conditions, to compel a German state to fulfill its federal obligations. It is one of Berlin’s most far-reaching constitutional instruments against a state government.
It has never been used in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany.
The key issue raised by the lawmakers is simple: A future AfD-led government had not even taken office.
Their letter states:
“The warning came immediately after a democratic election and before the newly elected government had committed any established violation of its constitutional obligations.”
Lawmakers From Five Countries Turn to UN
Bystron and the other MEPs have addressed their letter to Leopoldo Maldonado Gutiérrez, UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression.
They warn that the developments raise serious concerns about democratic pluralism and political participation in Germany.
The lawmakers come from Germany, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria and Italy. Supporters include Mary Khan, Gerald Hauser, Petra Steger, Zsuzsanna Borvendég, Rada Laykova, Petar Volgin and Roberto Vannacci.
The coalition also crosses parliamentary group lines. Austrian MEPs Gerald Hauser and Petra Steger represent Herbert Kickl’s FPÖ and sit with Patriots for Europe.
Warning of an “Authoritarian State System”
The letter also cites former German federal minister and constitutional law professor Rupert Scholz.
Scholz warned that attempts to override a democratic election through political or administrative means could risk a “transition into an authoritarian state system.”
That warning goes to the heart of the controversy: Why is Germany’s federal government discussing one of its most extreme constitutional instruments when the prospective state government has not yet governed, let alone committed an established violation of its constitutional obligations?
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Bystron: “That Is Why We Are Turning to the United Nations”
Bystron said:
“The threat of federal coercion is the latest item on a long list of abuses of state power to suppress the opposition in Germany. Now even the Chancellor is threatening to use the power of the state against the winner of a democratic election. That is why we are turning to the United Nations.”
The lawmakers are asking the UN Special Rapporteur to examine the case and seek an official response from the German government explaining the legal and factual basis for contemplating Article 37 against an AfD-led state government.
They also ask him to consider involving other relevant UN Special Procedures.
The controversy now extends far beyond Saxony-Anhalt. Germany has spent years demanding democratic standards and respect for political participation abroad. After the AfD’s 43.8% victory, European lawmakers from five countries are asking whether Berlin is applying those same standards at home.
