In a cautious response, the Union has reacted to the SPD’s decision to prepare a procedure for a far-right AfD party ban. Steffen Bilger, the first parliamentary business manager of the Union’s faction, stated that the existing findings do not yet justify such a move. He emphasized the high legal hurdles that a ban procedure would face, citing the recent ruling by the Federal Administrative Court on the “Compact” magazine, which the Ministry of the Interior had sought to ban.
Bilger expressed the Union’s agreement with the SPD that they should aim to win back as many of the AfD’s 10 million voters as possible by addressing concrete problems, rather than simply trying to ban the party. He noted that frustration cannot be banned and that further discussion on this matter should take place within the coalition.