Rhein wants AfD committee chairmanships allowed in Bundestag
The Hessian CDU leader wants parliamentary posts for the AfD, but rules out substantive cooperation.
Hessian minister-president Boris Rhein believes the CDU should support the election of AfD candidates as chairs of Bundestag committees. He says he wants to continue clearly distancing himself from the party on substance, but does not want to exclude it from the parliamentary organisation.
Rhein made his remarks in an interview with the German weekly Stern. In his view, the AfD was elected and should therefore be treated in parliamentary work in the same way as other parliamentary groups. He specifically mentioned the chairmanship of Bundestag committees.
In the Bundestag, the AfD, like other parliamentary groups, has the right to nominate candidates for various committee chairmanships. In earlier ballots, however, those candidates did not receive enough votes from other parliamentary groups. According to Deutschlandfunk, the German Constitutional Court saw no reason to intervene.
Rhein distinguishes between formal parliamentary positions and political cooperation. He says he does not want substantive cooperation with the AfD and remains opposed to a procedure to ban the party. In his view, the party should be fought politically, not legally.
With this, Rhein reopens the German debate over the so-called firewall: the agreement among the established parties not to cooperate with the AfD. The Bavarian broadcaster BR24 reports that Chancellor Friedrich Merz is, for now, maintaining that strict distance.
Rhein’s statement does not change the rules in the Bundestag. It does, however, put renewed pressure within the CDU to separate parliamentary representation from substantive cooperation. A decision on the committee chairmanships rests with the Bundestag parliamentary groups and the plenary.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- Boris Rhein advocates supporting AfD candidates for the chairmanships of Bundestag committees.
- The AfD nominated candidates, but they previously failed to win a majority.
- Rhein says he does not support substantive cooperation or a procedure to ban the party.
Left
Arguments Parliamentary positions confer influence and legitimacy. As long as the AfD contains anti-democratic and extremist currents, other parties should prevent it from becoming further normalised through procedural posts.
Values Protection of the democratic rule of law, minorities and institutional boundaries.
Consequences A firm separation can keep the AfD from having influence, but may also help it present itself as an excluded opposition.
Centre
Arguments Election results should be recognisable in parliamentary procedures, but formal rights need not imply substantive cooperation. Transparent rules and the vetting of candidates matter more than symbolic exclusion.
Values Institutional predictability, representation and administrative stability.
Consequences A compromise could normalise parliamentary functioning, but remains vulnerable to the question of where procedure ends and political legitimisation begins.
Right
Arguments Structurally excluding an elected parliamentary group from positions undermines voters’ trust. The CDU should oppose the AfD on substance while also showing that democratic rules apply to everyone.
Values Equal treatment, the voters’ mandate and political competition.
Consequences More institutional space could make the AfD assume responsibility, but could also strengthen its position of power within parliament.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The factual core has been confirmed by several German public news sources. The consequences described remain framed as possible political implications.
- confirmed Boris Rhein wants the CDU to support the election of AfD candidates as chairs of Bundestag committees. — Reported by Tagesschau and Deutschlandfunk on 4 October 2026. source
- confirmed AfD candidates previously failed to secure enough votes for committee chairmanships. — Described by Tagesschau and BR24. source
- confirmed Rhein rules out substantive cooperation with the AfD and opposes a procedure to ban it. — Confirmed by Tagesschau and Deutschlandfunk. source
Editor's note
Rhein’s statements and the earlier ballots have been confirmed by several German broadcasters. The political consequences cannot yet be determined.Sources
More on this in Dutch media
- AD — „duitsland afd”
- de Volkskrant — „duitsland afd”
- RTL Nieuws — „duitsland afd”