AfD's 2026 conference sparks outrage over Nazi rally anniversary clash
AfD Party Conference Set for July 2026 in Erfurt, Sparking Outrage Over Nazi-Era Parallels
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is scheduled to hold its federal party conference in Erfurt, in the eastern German state of Thuringia, on July 3–4, 2026—a choice of date and location that has drawn sharp criticism from German politicians.
The controversy stems from the fact that exactly 100 years earlier, on July 3–4, 1926, the then-ruling Nazi Party (NSDAP) held its own Reich Party Rally in Weimar, then the state capital of Thuringia, as reported by Die Zeit.
The NSDAP (National Socialist German Workers' Party) was founded during the Weimar Republic and promoted an ideology rooted in antisemitism, ultranationalism, and rejection of democracy and Marxism. From 1921 onward, its leader was Adolf Hitler, who later became Germany's chancellor.
Politicians Condemn AfD's "Deliberate Provocation"
Serap Güler, a state minister at Germany's Foreign Office and a member of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), told the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger that the AfD had intentionally chosen the parallel dates. She accused the party of showing "no respect for German history", adding:
"Honestly, how stupid do they think we all are?"
Rolf Mützenich, former leader of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) parliamentary group, also weighed in, telling Die Zeit that the AfD's decision aligns with its downplaying of Nazi crimes. He referenced a 2018 remark by AfD co-founder Alexander Gauland, who dismissed the Nazi era as "just a speck of bird droppings in over 1,000 years of successful German history."
Mützenich argued that the AfD was "deliberately provoking" to generate attention, calling the timing "no historical coincidence" that should be accepted without challenge. The 1926 NSDAP rally marked a key moment in the party's rise—and in Hitler's consolidation of power—including the founding of the Hitler Youth.
The AfD's Thuringia spokesman, Stefan Möller, dismissed the criticism, claiming that those drawing parallels to the 1926 Nazi rally were "obsessively exploiting history" for political gain.
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