Massive Protests Failed to Halt Germany’s AfD Conference

Tens of thousands of protesters flooded the streets of Erfurt, Germany to stop a legal political party convention — and the conference started on time anyway.

Story Snapshot

Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) party held its annual conference in Erfurt on July 4, 2026, despite massive protests aimed at shutting it down.
Police estimated around 31,000 protesters took part — yet AfD delegates got in, the conference started on schedule, and party leaders were re-elected by wide margins.
Alice Weidel was re-elected as co-leader with 81% of the vote; Tino Chrupalla kept his seat with 70%.
Some protesters turned violent — attacking police and an AfD office with paint bombs and fireworks — while courts had already banned road blockades before the event.

Massive Protests, Little Effect on the Conference

On Saturday, July 4, 2026, tens of thousands of people marched through Erfurt to protest the AfD’s national party convention. Union members, left-wing groups, and anti-fascist activists sat down in roads and blocked tram lines to cut off access to the venue. Courts had already banned the blockades before the event, and that ban held even after city officials tried to appeal it. Despite all of it, most delegates reached the hall and the conference began on time.

Thuringia’s Interior Minister Georg Maier said most of the protests were peaceful, calling the scene “colorful and loud.” But police also reported real violence. An AfD constituency office was hit with paint bombs. Officers were struck with fireworks. Journalists from conservative media outlets were attacked near the convention center. Police used pepper spray in some areas to keep emergency routes open. By day’s end, 60 people had been arrested — 48 on criminal charges.

AfD Leaders Re-Elected With Strong Majorities

Inside the convention hall, AfD delegates voted to keep their co-leaders in place. Alice Weidel, 47, won re-election with 81.3% of the vote. Tino Chrupalla, 51, earned 70% — down from the 83% he received two years ago. Neither faced a challenger. The party used the event to project unity ahead of key regional elections in Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, where the AfD hopes to become the largest party and enter state government for the first time.

Weidel addressed the protesters directly from inside the hall. “You won’t bring us down,” she said. “On the contrary, we’re getting stronger and bigger all the time.” Chrupalla called the demonstrators “the last resort of our political rivals.” The AfD finished second in Germany’s February 2025 national election with 20.8% of the vote — the best result for a far-right party in Germany since World War II.

A Controversy Over Timing and History

The convention drew extra attention because of when and where it was held. The Erfurt event coincided with the 100th anniversary of a nearby Nazi Party meeting that helped cement Adolf Hitler’s control over the fascist movement. Historians and political opponents said the timing was loaded with meaning. The AfD rejected that claim entirely, calling the connection a smear by political rivals. The party has long pushed back against comparisons to Nazi-era politics.

The tactic allowed AfD delegates to prepare unhindered for the event where co-leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla were re-elected, sharpening the party's anti-immigration and anti-globalist messaging.

— Mihir Solanki (@CashToWealth) July 5, 2026

The broader picture is hard to ignore. A legally operating political party — Germany’s biggest opposition group — held a lawful meeting. Thousands tried to physically stop it. Courts said the blockades were illegal. Police held the line. The conference happened. Whatever one thinks of the AfD’s politics, the episode raises a question that cuts across left and right: when large crowds try to physically block a legal democratic process, who actually wins? The AfD walked away with re-elected leaders and a story that plays straight into its message about being silenced by elites.