Extremism in Brandenburg reaches a record high because of the AfD
Brandenburg’s far-right count rose 61% to 5,890, driven largely by how AfD members are counted. Officials also warned about youth radicalization online.
Intelligence analysis by GPT-5.4 Mini
Brandenburg’s domestic intelligence report shows a sharp statistical jump in the far-right scene, with the AfD and its youth organization treated as central actors. Officials say the increase is mostly due to the party being included in the count, while other extremist categories changed more modestly.
Brandenburg’s rule-watchers say the number of right-wing extremists looks much bigger now, mostly because they started counting the AfD members too. It is like adding a whole soccer team to a school headcount and then the total jumps fast.
Analysis
What the report says
Brandenburg’s domestic intelligence service says the state’s far-right “person potential” climbed to a record 5,890 in 2025, up 61% from the previous year. Interior Minister Jan Redmann called the jump “a purely statistical effect” and said it would be wrong to claim that people had radicalized in that volume over a single year.
Why the number jumped
According to the report, the total includes the roughly 3,600 AfD members in Brandenburg. The state intelligence chief said the AfD’s membership is counted in the total, and the party plus its youth organization, Generation Deutschland, are viewed as central actors in the right-wing extremist scene. The agency has classified the AfD as proven right-wing extremist since last year.
Other extremist scenes
The report also shows smaller changes elsewhere. Left-wing extremism rose by one-fifth to 660 people, Islamism increased by almost 16% to 260, and the so-called Reich citizens and self-administrators fell by about a third to 650.
Political reaction
Redmann warned about increasing radicalization among young people through social media and urged tighter limits on access to social media for minors. The report frames online platforms as a growing concern for prevention policy, even as the biggest numerical change comes from the way the AfD is counted in the statistics.
Key points
- Brandenburg’s far-right person potential rose 61% to 5,890 in 2025, according to the state’s domestic intelligence report.
- Officials say the increase is mainly statistical because the roughly 3,600 Brandenburg AfD members are included in the count.
- The AfD and its youth organization Generation Deutschland are described as central actors in the right-wing extremist scene.
- The state intelligence service has classified the AfD as proven right-wing extremist since last year.
- Other categories moved more modestly: left-wing extremists rose to 660, Islamists to 260, while Reich citizens fell to 650.
If the report helps authorities focus on prevention, it could sharpen responses to extremist networks and youth radicalization. Clearer counting may also make public debate about the scale of the problem more honest.
The sharp rise could deepen political conflict around the AfD and make the extremism debate more polarized. If online radicalization among young people keeps growing, prevention efforts may lag behind the pace of recruitment and messaging.
