Prohibited political parties in Germany

The procedure for prohibition of a political party involves a judicial process laid-out in the Basic Law for the Federal Republic Germany and relevant enabling legislation, and decisions are appealable to the European Court of Human Rights.

[3][4] The constitutional order of the Federal Republic of Germany is based on the concept of streitbare Demokratie ("militant democracy") which posits that the state, as an entity, can suppress individual and corporate freedoms to ensure the perpetuity of democratic governance.

[7] According to the court, parties that "in view of their aims or the behaviour of their adherents, seek to undermine or abolish the free democratic basic order or to endanger the existence of the Federal Republic of Germany must be declared unconstitutional".

The first criteria is that a party demonstrate an "aggressive and combative attitude" that creates a "climate of fear" with the ultimate aim of abolishing the democratic order or the existence of the Federal Republic of Germany.

[6] "Parties that, by reason of their aims or the behaviour of their adherents, seek to undermine or abolish the free democratic basic order or to endanger the existence of the Federal Republic of Germany shall be unconstitutional."

[9] Parties that only meet the first criterion (those that seek to "undermine or abolish" democracy or the German state), but that do not have a realistic chance of achieving their objectives, are considered "anti-constitutional" as opposed to "unconstitutional" and can be prohibited from accessing public campaign financing, but must otherwise be left unmolested in their organizing and electioneering activity.

[7][10][6] The court initiates an inquiry, and makes a ruling, only on the request of the Bundesregierung, the Bundestag, the Bundesrat, or the governments of one of the Lander in the case of local parties.

[16][17][5] The case was hampered by the discovery that the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution had shredded some of its evidentiary files related to the party in advance of the matter being brought to the court.

[10] In 2024, Carmen Wegge, Martina Renner and other members of the Bundestag advanced a resolution calling for the Federal Constitutional Court to initiate an inquiry into the prohibition of Alternative for Germany.