Thousands of people tried to block delegates from a conference where Alice Weidel was chosen as the Alternative for Germany’s candidate for chancellor in next month’s election.

Thousands of protesters gathered in the German town of Riesse, chanting “No to the Nazis.” The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) held a key meeting there to endorse co-leader Alice Weidel as its candidate for chancellor in next month’s snap elections.

The meeting of more than 600 delegates ended up running two hours later than planned on Saturday after police cleared thousands of protesters who had set up a blockade in a town in the AfD stronghold in the eastern state of Saxony.

Protest organizers said 12,000 people from across the country took part in the demonstrations, and police attacked groups of demonstrators and used pepper spray to disperse them.

Maria Schmidt, a spokesperson for protest organizers, said: “Today we are protecting people’s right to live safely without fear of deportation or attack.

“We all made it clear: Rissa is not a peaceful place for fascism,” she said.

Police said about 8,000 demonstrators gathered outside the town’s conference center. As of late morning, a spokesman said “no serious disturbances had occurred” but a road leading to Risa remained blocked by protesters.

As the convention got under way at the conference centre, Wedel congratulated her party colleagues for “standing up to the left-wing thugs”, while party co-leader Tino Krupala accused the demonstrators of behaving like “anti-democrats and terrorists” “.

“Re-immigration”

Analysts say Wedel – who was endorsed by tech billionaire Elon Musk in a live chat on X this week – has little realistic chance of becoming Germany’s leader in the February 23 election.

Although polls show the far-right party in second place, attracting the support of about 20% of voters, other parties refuse to cooperate with it.

One of the proposed amendments at a two-day AfD conference where delegates will finalize the party’s electoral program would call for the party to implement an “immigration” policy, meaning a broad campaign to deport foreigners Out of Germany.

Controversy has also arisen over the party leadership’s plan to replace its Youth Alternative group (Youth Alternative), which has been labeled an extremist group by intelligence services.

The draft declaration also includes a commitment to exit the eurozone and reverse Germany’s planned exit from nuclear power.

“Let’s fight”

Friedrich Merz, the candidate of the mainstream conservative opposition Alliance group, is leading the polls with about 30% of the vote and is currently expected to become the next chancellor.

The EU is focused on boosting Germany’s stagnant economy and reducing irregular migration.

At a news conference in Hamburg, Merz focused on bringing about “fundamental changes” after the collapse in November of the unpopular and fractious coalition led by center-left Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

Scholz’s coalition government fell apart after he fired his finance minister over a dispute over how to revive the economy, leading to a snap election.

Scholz acknowledged mistakes were made Saturday but said it was time to look to the future.

“Let us fight,” he told delegates at the party congress in Berlin, which formally confirmed his candidacy with a show of hands.