Police and Intelligence: The Risks of a Far-Right Takeover

• Rising poll numbers for the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt have raised concerns about a potential far-right takeover of state government.
• Experts warn of the risks posed to police and intelligence services and the limited mechanisms available to prevent them from becoming tools of an authoritarian regime.

Administrative Takeover and Personnel Control

• A new government could quickly replace 'political civil servants' (e.g., the head of the state's intelligence office) to exert immediate control.
• While mid-level police personnel are protected by civil service laws, a regime could use long-term strategies like targeted promotions, forced transfers, and disciplinary proceedings to install loyalists.
• These tactics create significant potential for the harassment of democratic staff and the thinning out of independent-minded officials.

Weaponization of Security Powers

• While the principle of legality requires the police to investigate crimes, a government can dictate priorities—potentially deprioritizing far-right extremism while escalating scrutiny of political opponents.
• Funding for exit programs for extremists and support for pro-democracy civil society initiatives could be abruptly cut.

Data Interoperability Risks

• State police forces are interconnected with federal and other state databases. A far-right state government could misuse these links to identify or track political dissidents.
• Legal expert Markus Thiel suggests exploring mechanisms to temporarily exclude compromised state authorities from shared intelligence systems, such as the NADIS (intelligence information system), as a last resort.

Defense Mechanisms and Limitations

• State-level legislative protections are insufficient because a new majority can simply rewrite the laws.
• Judicial remedies are often too slow to prevent immediate damage to democratic structures.
• Article 91 of the German Basic Law allows for federal intervention, where the federal government can take command of state police forces if the state fails to protect the constitutional order.
• While civil servants have the right to 'remonstrate' against illegal orders, the practical effectiveness is limited by the pressure of potential disciplinary retaliation from superiors.