Germany: Top court rules against Merkel in AfD spat

Germany's Federal Constitutional Court has ruled against former Chancellor Angela Merkel after the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) sued her over her remarks on a 2020 regional election.

The court said that Merkel's remarks violated the AfD's right to fair political competition.

The incident dates back to early 2020 when, for the first time since the party's founding in 2013, a German state leader was elected due to votes from the AfD.

Following the elections in the eastern state of Thuringia, incumbent state premier Bodo Ramelow of the Left party was seeking re-election from his fellow lawmakers. He failed to gain a majority in the first round of voting, and in a huge upset — and supported by AfD votes — Thomas Kemmerich of the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP) found himself elected state premier despite his party only winning 5% of the state vote.

All of Germany's mainstream parties have long refused to work with the AfD over accusations that the party is xenophobic or too extreme, even in Thuringia, where they came in second behind the Left. 

Merkel, speaking to journalists on a trip to South Africa at the time, called Kemmerich's decision to accept the election "inexcusable" and that the outcome should "be reversed." She also said it was a "bad day for democracy."

The AfD called it a "direct attack" and said it was unconstitutional for a chancellor to say such things about another party under the banner of an official state visit.

Kemmerich stepped down three days later under immense pressure, though he led a caretaker government for a short while until Ramelow was re-elected.

The AfD had previously won a similar case against Merkel's former Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, over passages on the ministry's website that were critical of their party.

es/jcg (AFP, dpa)

Correction: A previous version of this article said the ruling came from the Federal Court of Justice, when it actually came from the Federal Constitutional Court.