EXCLUSIVE: The Right-wing party held a rally for thousands of supporters as Germany seemingly drifts to policies not seen since WWII.
The AfD rally in Schwerin before the state election on September 20 (Image: Richard Ashmore)
They have pledged to their growing number of supporters that they will “make runways glow” with deportation flights. The electorate go to the ballot box in the rural former East German north-western state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern today where latest polling puts AfD neck-and-neck with the Left-wing Social Democrats.
The nationalist AfD (Alternative für Deutschland) has enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity in recent years with anti-immigration, anti-Islam, pro-Russian and mass deportation policies. Parallels have been drawn between the strategies of AfD and those of the Trump administration in the United States and Reform UK in Britain.
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However, Jewish groups and opposition figures have warned of “considerable dangers” if AfD takes power. Holocaust survivor Charlotte Knoblauch told the Sunday Express the rise of AfD had been fuelled by a “dangerous combination” of discontent with the economy and immigration. “I fear Germany is already on a very slippery slope,” she said.
The party’s state election victory on September 6 in neighbouring Saxony-Anhalt made it the first hard-Right party to control a region of Germany since the Nazis in the 1940s. At a packed AfD rally in the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern capital, Schwerin, yesterday, the Express saw a crowd of thousands gather to hear candidate Leif-Erik Holm.
Speaking exclusively to the Express, he said: “Just because we want a restrictive migration policy and because we want order in our own country does not make us far-Right. We are perfectly normal civic conservatives.
AfD state election winner Ulrich Siegmund with candidate Leif-Erik Holm (Image: Getty )
“Many of the problems are naturally also present in Britain. If we take migration, for example, that is also very evident in Britain, and that is something we are dealing with. “That is effectively our unique selling point in politics: that we also want to stop this illegal immigration.
“And that is something we really need to sort out properly within Europe. I mean, that was one of the reasons at the time why the UK left the European Union: because there was simply too much illegal immigration and there was no longer any control over migrants. That was also what caused the change in public mood during the referendum at the time.”
Before Mr Holm took to the stage to address the packed crowd, Petra Federau, the AfD spokeswoman, talked about the threat of “children in burkhas” and at the same time said the party would not allow “transvestites to read stories to children in schools”. Young, elderly, and families with babies were in attendance, as well as a more sinister element of tattooed skinheads.
One middle-aged rock artist sang to the crowd about a “wind from the East” saving Germany from “traitors” talking “rhubarb” in politics.
Reivo, an AfD supporter who said his tattoos identified him as a Viking, said the state was “screwed” and AfD wanted to make it better. He said a lack of peace talks over the war in Ukraine, immigration and the cost of living were reasons for his vote. He claimed the SDP had been manipulating the electorate and that AfD would win.
Matze, an ambulance driver, said: “Immigration is too high and wages are too low.” (Image: Richard Ashmore)
Matze, an ambulance driver, said: “Immigration is too high and wages are too low. There are too many migrants, who else are we going to vote for to change things?”
Raphael, who had been drinking, said that where he lived there were “asylum homes” which had cost millions. He added: “Crime and immigration are too high.”
Jurgen said he had come as a neutral to “check out” what the AfD were like instead of seeing it on TV. He said: “I’m more Leftwing traditionally. I think the real issue is the rich having too much power.”
A win for AfD would claim a second state for the party after it surged to power in neighbouring Saxony-Anhalt, another former eastern bloc region, earlier this month. In Germany, states hold significant powers, including deciding policies for education, health, policing and local taxes.
Reivo, an AfD supporter, said his tattoos showed he was a viking (Image: Richard Ashmore)
But Holocaust survivor Ms Knoblauch, continued: “The stronger the AfD gets, the more anaemic the democratic centre appears. That is why we, as members of the Jewish community, are so alarmed.”
The former vice-president of the World Jewish Congress added that the recent victory of AfD candidate Ulrich Siegmund was a chilling prospect not seen since the Second World War. She said: “Ulrich Siegmund just publicly declared his support for increased military spending, not in response to external threats, but because all the new gear would come in handy for the remigration the party wants to carry out – with it being understood that ‘remigration’ would include German citizens whose ancestry the party does not deem ‘German’ enough.”
Stefan Kollasch, head of the Regional Centre for Democratic Culture West Mecklenburg, said there were “considerable dangers arising” from the AfD surge in power in Germany.
He said: “Extremist efforts are aimed at destroying social cohesion.
“Above all, the AfD calls into question the dignity and equal worth of certain groups of people, and this poses very concrete dangers to people’s health and lives.”
Berlin is also set to vote today, although in a traditionally Left-wing city the AfD is not expected to make much ground. But German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is facing mounting pressure as his centre-right Christian Democrats look set to underperform in both elections.
Merz, 70, became Germany’s leader 16 months ago with promises to turn around an economy that has barely grown in years, but has failed to lift a sullen national mood and has himself become deeply unpopular.
BBC icon Jon Sopel breaks silence on Charles Spencer bombshell – and it’s scathing
The former BBC News star has had his say on bombshell claims made in Earl Spencer’s new book.
Jon Sopel has broken his silence (Image: Getty)
Former BBC chief political correspondent Jon Sopel has broken his silence on Earl Charles Spencer’s King Charles bombshell with a scathing comment. Over the past week, Spencer has been releasing excerpts from his new memoir Swan Song about his late sister Princess Diana, including allegations that the monarch was “giddily elated” when he talking about Diana’s death.
The palace has denied those claims and said “recollections may vary”, and Spencer has been accused of profiting off his sister’s passing. This weekend, a clip dating back to a 1998 interview with Spencer went viral on social media, in which Spencer said he would “never” dream of making money off his sister.
He said in an interview at the time: “People have lost track of this. Can you imagine anybody making a profit out of their brother or sister’s death? It’s so low it’s inconceivable. I don’t know anyone who would.
“But because the press can present Diana as a public figure, rather than as my sister, they can make it sort of a possible accusation, whereas of course it’s completely out of the question. I would never profit from Diana’s death.”
Now Sopel has shared that clip on X, tweeting: “1998: ‘I will never profit from Diana’s death’. 2026: book serialisation in Daily Mail, publication next week.” He included a shrugging emoji with his scathing response.
Charles Spencer said he would ‘never’ profit off Diana’s death (Image: Getty)
Fans were quick to respond on social media, with one writing: “Earl Spencer has made me agree with Jon Sopel. Wonders will never cease.”
Another said: “The Spencer family were never working in the interests of Diana. They’re still not.”
And a third penned: “Such a shame he’s done this now. What possible motivation does he have to create waves when none were forecast. A rather sad plea for help?”