Overview
- Local election committees in Lower Saxony have rejected at least four AfD candidates for mayor, lord mayor or landrat posts by citing doubts that the nominees can guarantee support for the free democratic basic order.
- The state rule change this spring requires Wahlausschüsse to consult the Kommunalaufsicht and allows use of Verfassungsschutz material when there are concrete signs a candidate lacks constitutional loyalty.
- AfD Bundestag member Martin Sichert filed an urgent application at the Verwaltungsgericht Oldenburg on Wednesday asking to be reinstated on the Friesland landrat ballot and the court has confirmed receipt of his request.
- Interior Minister Daniela Behrens defended the case‑by‑case checks and said party membership alone is not decisive, while the AfD calls the exclusions politically motivated and plans legal challenges.
- Legal experts say pre‑election injunctions are rarely granted under existing law and precedent, so the dispute is likely to produce appeals and post‑vote review procedures rather than quick, clear rulings before the 13 September vote.