The far-right AfD declared its ambition to rise to power in Germany as its party congress kicked off Saturday with clashes between hooded demonstrators and police, just weeks after it scored record EU election results. "We want to govern, first in the east (of Germany), then in the west, then at federal level," Tino Chrupalla, co-president of the Alternative for Germany (AfD), told around 600 delegates of the two-day meeting which start half an hour late due to street blockades. In early June the Alternative for Germany (AfD) notched up its best European Union election result since its creation in 2013, winning 16 percent of the vote to take second place. Chrupalla praised party progress at a local level and its strong European Union election result. The AfD congress comes ahead of three key elections in September in states that once formed part of communist East Germany, and where the AfD has been topping opinion polls.

Source: The Express Tribune June 30, 2024 09:00 UTC