State party conference of the Saxon Greens begins

The Saxon Greens have convened for their state party conference in Neukieritzsch near Leipzig. At the state convention on Saturday, the almost 100 delegates will vote on an urgent motion to ban the AfD, among other things. The classification of the AfD as a confirmed right-wing extremist party by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution at the beginning of May gives more than enough reason to start the process of examining a party ban, the party said.

"We demand that the German
federal government, the Bundesrat or the Bundestag apply for a ban procedure," the motion states. Other state associations of the Alliance Greens, the members of the Greens in the Bundestag as well as the federal executive and the Saxon state government were also called upon to support a ban procedure.

Greens see a ban on the AfD as having a signal effect

"Right-wing extremist ideas are spreading in many different ways in people's minds. Pushing it back is a major task for society as a whole - but banning the AfD would be a start with a signal effect, as the AfD plays a key role in legitimizing and spreading far-right narratives, including in the center of society," the motion continued.

Party wants to elect new dual leadership

The Greens also want to set the course for the future in terms of personnel at their two-day party conference on Saturday. A new dual leadership will then be elected. Three women and two men are running for the chairmanship. The previous dual leadership with Christin Furtenbacher and Marie Müser will not be standing again. Furtenbacher resigned in December 2024. Since then, Müser has led the party alone.

The agenda also includes a key motion from the state executive committee. It revolves around a sustainable financial policy and calls for, among other things, a reform of the debt brake in order to be able to take out loans for investments. Federal Chairman Felix Banaszak will be a guest at the party conference on Saturday.

The Greens in Saxony currently have more than 5,200 members. The party only received 5.1 percent of the vote in the state elections. It was not enough to secure further government participation in the previous coalition with the CDU and SPD.