Overview

• RND, citing the Messe Erfurt venue operator, reports that the AfD aims to hold its next federal party congress in Erfurt on the first weekend of July 2026.
• The party intends to conduct a routine election of new leadership at the gathering.
• Thuringia’s Interior Minister Georg Maier said the location choice is no accident and suggested Björn Höcke seeks a complete takeover of the party.
• Maier warned of further radicalization, said counter-demonstrations should be expected, and urged civil society to be present.
• Former state premier Bodo Ramelow called the choice an overt reference to Höcke and a sign of the AfD’s internal power dynamics.