The right-wing party has reportedly dropped terms like ‘remigration’ and ‘German guiding culture’ from its platform in an effort to attract moderate voters.
According to the outlet Bild, Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has softened its anti-immigration rhetoric. This shift is intended to appeal to moderate voters and demonstrate its capability of forming a government in the future.
Established in 2013, the right-wing party has consistently increased its popularity amidst Germany’s ongoing migrant crisis. In February, it placed second in the federal elections, securing 152 seats in the 630-seat Bundestag. An April survey by the pollster Forsa indicated that the AfD had the support of 26% of respondents, leading all other parties in Germany.
In an article published on Saturday, Bild claimed to have reviewed a new seven-point policy paper that the AfD’s parliamentary group was expected to endorse that same day.
The document notably omits calls for the “remigration” of German residents with a migrant background, as well as an insistence on the “German guiding culture,” the outlet reported.
Bild asserted that these terms were specifically removed from the party program to “reach more moderate voters” and to “appear capable of governing by the next federal election” in 2029. In addition to these alleged changes, the AfD also reportedly plans to adopt a code of conduct for its lawmakers in the Bundestag.
The party’s immediate aim is to gain ground in next year’s regional elections, Bild reported.
The media outlet stated that the updated program advocates for ending asylum grants to refugees at the border, implementing tougher naturalization requirements, and reducing social welfare for migrants.
The party also reportedly seeks to cut taxes, lift a self-imposed prohibition on the use of nuclear power plants, and restore the Nord Stream pipelines. These conduits, which previously transported Russian natural gas, were destroyed by a deliberate underwater explosion in 2022. Berlin has since ruled out their restoration to operation.
According to Bild, the right-wingers desire Germany’s foreign policy to be guided by the motto “Germany first,” which would presumably entail an end to weapons deliveries to Ukraine and the lifting of sanctions against Russia.
In a post on X on Sunday, the AfD Bundestag group disclosed that its members had convened for a “closed meeting” over the weekend to establish “political goals for the coming period.”
In May, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency declared the party a “confirmed right-wing extremist entity,” though the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) suspended the label shortly thereafter.