Wikipedia

Alice Weidel

Alice Elisabeth Weidel (born 6 February 1979) is a German politician who has been serving as co-chairwoman of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party alongside Tino Chrupalla since June 2022,[1] though she is considered to be part of the more moderate conservative Alternative Mitte faction within the AfD.[2][3]

Alice Weidel
MdB
Weidel in 2019, on the election night of the 2019 Saxony state election
Leader of the Alternative for Germany
Incumbent
Assumed office
18 June 2022
Serving with Tino Chrupalla
DeputyStephan Brandner
Peter Boehringer
Mariana Harder-Kühnel
Preceded byJörg Meuthen
Leader of the Alternative for Germany
in the Bundestag
Incumbent
Assumed office
26 September 2017
Serving with Tino Chrupalla
Chief WhipBernd Baumann
DeputyPeter Felser
Leif-Erik Holm
Sebastian Münzenmaier
Beatrix von Storch
Preceded byPosition established
Leader of the Alternative for Germany
in Baden-Württemberg
In office
15 February 2020 – 17 July 2022
DeputyMartin Hess
Marc Jongen
Markus Frohnmaier
Preceded byBernd Gögel
Dirk Spaniel
Succeeded byMarkus Frohnmaier
Emil Sänze
Leader of the Opposition
In office
24 October 2017 – 26 October 2021
Serving with Alexander Gauland
ChancellorAngela Merkel
Preceded bySahra Wagenknecht
Dietmar Bartsch
Succeeded byRalph Brinkhaus
Member of the Bundestag
for Baden-Württemberg
Incumbent
Assumed office
24 October 2017
Preceded byMulti-member district
ConstituencyAfD List
Personal details
Born
Alice Elisabeth Weidel

(1979-02-06) 6 February 1979 (age 45)
Gütersloh, West Germany
Political partyAlternative for Germany
Domestic partnerSarah Bossard
Children2 (adopted)
Residences
Alma materUniversity of Bayreuth

Since October 2017, she has held the position of leader of the AfD parliamentary group in the Bundestag. Weidel became a member of the Bundestag (MdB) in the 2017 federal election, where she was the AfD's lead candidate alongside Alexander Gauland.[4] In the 2021 federal election, she once again served as their lead candidate, alongside Tino Chrupalla.[5] From February 2020 to July 2022, Weidel held the position of chairwoman of the AfD state association in Baden-Württemberg.[6] In 2024, she was selected as her party's candidate for Chancellor in the upcoming 2025 German federal election.

Early life and career

Weidel was born in Gütersloh and grew up in Versmold, where she graduated from a Christliches Jugenddorfwerk Deutschlands (CJD) Gymnasium in 1998.[7] She studied economics and business administration at the University of Bayreuth and graduated as one of the best in the year in 2004.[8] After receiving her undergraduate degree, Weidel went to work for Goldman Sachs Asset Management from July 2005 to June 2006 as an analyst in Frankfurt.[9][10] In the late 2000s, she worked at the Bank of China, and lived for six years in China[7][11] where she learned to speak Mandarin.[12] Subsequently, she wrote a doctoral thesis with the health economist Peter Oberender at the Faculty of Law and Economics in Bayreuth on the future of the Chinese pension system. In 2011, she received a doctorate in international development.[7][9][13][14] Her doctorate was supported by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.[15]

From March 2011 to May 2013, she worked as Vice President at Allianz Global Investors in Frankfurt.[10][9] Since 2014, she has worked as a freelance business consultant.[7] In 2015, she worked for Rocket Internet and Foodora.[16] As of 2016, Weidel was a member of the Friedrich A. von Hayek Society [de].[17]

Politics

Alternative for Germany

Weidel joined the Alternative for Germany (AfD) in October 2013.[18] According to Weidel, she was first attracted to the party due to her opposition to the euro.[19] She was elected to the federal executive committee of the AfD in June 2015.[20] In April 2017, she was elected co-Lead Candidate of the party.[13] She is the first lesbian woman to serve as a lead candidate of her party.[21] She has been identified by the media as belonging to the more moderate conservative Alternative Mitte faction within the AfD.[2][3]

The Switzerland-based property billionaire Henning Conle supported AfD. He donated a total of 132,000 euros by means of straw men for the 2017 federal election campaign of Alice Weidel. Conle disguised his donation from Switzerland in 18 tranches.[22][23] The AfD had to pay the Bundestag a high fine for this donation, but Weidel and three other officials went unpunished.[23]

In January 2024, it emerged that Roland Hartwig – who had been appointed as an advisor to Weidel – attended a controversial meeting with German far-right activists in which plans to deport millions of people living in Germany, including some with German citizenship, were presented and discussed. In the wake of this, Weidel fired Hartwig as her advisor.[24]

Political positions

 
Weidel in 2017

Religion

At the end of 2017, Weidel accused the Catholic Church and the Protestant Church in Germany of "playing the same inglorious role that they played in the Third Reich", accusing both churches of being "thoroughly politicized" and stating that AfD is "the only Christian party that still exists" in Germany.[25] Such statements were dismissed by the Catholic German Bishops' Conference and the Evangelical Church as "polemics" and "derailment".[26]

Immigration

Weidel has criticized the immigration policies of Angela Merkel, stating that "the country will be destroyed through this immigration policy. Donald Trump said that Merkel is insane and I absolutely agree with that. It is a completely nonsensical form of politics that is being followed here."[19] She has called for the German government to invest in "special economic zones" in the Middle East to encourage educated and skilled persons to remain in their home countries and avoid the possibility of brain drain,[19] but also says she supports a "Canadian-style system" which would prioritize skilled, over unskilled, immigrants.[27]

European Union

Weidel supports continued German membership in the European Union; however, she has called for economically weak states, such as Greece, to leave.[19] Despite her stance on German membership of the EU, she believes that Germany should withdraw from the Eurozone.[19] She has also stated that Brexit was "a model for Germany, that one can make a sovereign decision like that."[28]

LGBT issues

Weidel has stated her opposition to discussion of sexuality prior to puberty saying that "I don't want anyone with their gender idiocy or their early sexualisation classes coming near my children."[19]

She has also expressed her opposition to legalization of same-sex marriage, stating that she supports protection of the "traditional family" while also supporting "other lifestyles".[19] She has said she supports civil partnership for gay and lesbian couples, noting she is a lesbian herself and in a civil partnership with another woman.[13][29]

Economic issues

Weidel vigorously defends economic liberalism and declares former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to be her role model.[30]

Weidel expresses support for tax cuts and the abolition of inheritance tax, and opposes the minimum wage.[31]

Environment

Weidel has expressed doubts about global warming.[32]

Controversies

TV show "political correctness" incident

In April 2017, Weidel railed against political correctness, claiming that it belonged in the "dustbin of history".[33] In response, on 27 April, TV presenter Christian Ehring of the satire program extra 3 addressed this, saying "That's right! Let's put an end to political correctness. The Nazi slut is right. Was this incorrect enough? I hope so!"[33] Weidel sued the channel seeking to forbid re-airing of the program, and on 17 May the Hamburg District Court ruled against her, stating that a public figure must tolerate exaggerated criticism.[34] Weidel disagreed with the decision and promised to bring it to the Oberlandesgericht (Higher Regional Court).[35] As of September 2017, no further action had taken place.[33]

Illegal immigration incident

A September 2017 report by Die Zeit claimed that Weidel had illegally hired a Syrian refugee to do housework at her home in Switzerland. The report also alleged that the asylum seeker did not have a written work contract, nor were there invoices for her work. Weidel responded in a tweet that the Die Zeit report was "fake news" and "false" and Weidel's lawyer stated that Weidel had a Syrian stay at her home as a guest but not as a worker.[36][37][38]

Border revisionism

In June 2023, Weidel commented on the election polls results in former East Germany, stating that AfD has great support in this region. However, she referred to the region as Mitteldeutschland (central Germany), suggesting that the so-called Recovered Territories are part of Germany, which caused controversies among the Polish politicians.[39]

Personal life

Weidel is in a relationship with Sarah Bossard, a woman who lives in Einsiedeln, Switzerland, and is originally from Sri Lanka; she works as a film producer. Weidel lives in both Berlin and Einsiedeln, and stated in 2017 that she primarily resides in the former. She and her partner are in a civil union and have two adopted children.[40][41][42]

Selected publications

  • Das Rentensystem der Volksrepublik China. Reformoptionen aus ordnungstheoretischer Sicht zur Erhöhung der Risikoresistenz (= Schriften zur Nationalökonomie. Band 60). Verlag P.C.O., Bayreuth 2011, ISBN 978-3-941678-25-5.

References

  1. ^ Deutschlandfunk (18 June 2022). "Alice Weidel und Tino Chrupalla zum Führungsduo der AfD gewählt". Deutschlandfunk (in German). Archived from the original on 15 June 2022. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Diese Geste finden "gemäßigte" AfDler verfassungsfeindlich". WeltN24 (in German). 3 October 2017. Archived from the original on 4 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  3. ^ a b Orde, Sabine am (6 October 2017). "Alternative Mitte "gegen" Flügel". Die Tageszeitung (in German). Archived from the original on 8 October 2017. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
  4. ^ Grieshaber, Kirsten (23 April 2017). "Germany's AfD party elects Alexander Gauland and Alice Weidel as general election candidates". The Independent. Archived from the original on 27 April 2017. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  5. ^ Der Spiegel (25 May 2021). "Weidel und Chrupalla zu Spitzenkandidaten der AfD gewählt". Der Spiegel (in German). Archived from the original on 28 May 2021. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  6. ^ SWR (17 July 2022). "Chaos im Kampf um AfD-Landesvorsitz in BW - völkisch-national orientierte Kräfte gestärkt". SWR. Archived from the original on 1 December 2023. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d Becker, Sven (4 May 2017). "How Far to the Right Is Alice Weidel?". Der Spiegel. Archived from the original on 4 May 2017. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
  8. ^ Jürgen Abel (24 May 2004). "Bayreuther Ökonom: Im Wissenschaftswettbewerb eindeutig positionieren und Stärken herausarbeiten" (in German). Archived from the original on 6 September 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  9. ^ a b c Marc Felix Serrao (2 March 2017). "ALICE WEIDEL IM PORTRÄT: Alternative zu Höcke". Faz.net (in German). Archived from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  10. ^ a b "Deutscher Bundestag - Dr. Alice Weidel". Deutscher Bundestag (in German). Archived from the original on 25 October 2021. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
  11. ^ Pepping, Dagmar (26 July 2016). "Alice Weidel - Hoffnungsträgerin der AfD" (in German). NDR. Archived from the original on 24 July 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  12. ^ "Germany's far right preaches traditional values. Can a lesbian mother be its new voice?". The Washington Post. 15 May 2017. Archived from the original on 15 May 2017. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
  13. ^ a b c Luyken, Jörg (11 May 2017). "'Merkel is insane': meet the woman leading the AfD into the elections". The Local. Archived from the original on 11 May 2017. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
  14. ^ Schuster, Kathleen (4 September 2017). "AfD's Alice Weidel: The pride of the populists, a mystery to everyone else". dw.com. Archived from the original on 5 September 2017. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
  15. ^ "Publizierte Dissertationen aus der Promotionsförderung" (in German). Archived from the original on 30 June 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  16. ^ Andreas Clasen (27 April 2016). ""Mit völkischem Gerede kann ich nichts anfangen"" (in German). Südwest Presse. Archived from the original on 7 January 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  17. ^ Pascal Beucker (18 March 2016). "Marktradikal und blank". Die Tageszeitung (in German).
  18. ^ Sabine am Orde (9 September 2017). "AfD-Politikerin Alice Weidel: Die neue Rechte". Die Tageszeitung (in German). Archived from the original on 9 September 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g Ma, Alexandra (22 September 2017). "Meet Alice Weidel, the ex-Goldman Sachs banker who could lead a far-right party to its best German election result since the Nazis". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 22 September 2017. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
  20. ^ Melanie Amann; Sven Becker (3 May 2017). "Neue AfD-Spitzenkandidatin Wer ist Alice Weidel?". Der Spiegel (in German). No. 18/2017. Archived from the original on 3 May 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  21. ^ "Cosmopolitan Lesbian Turns Far-Right Agitator". 20 September 2017. Archived from the original on 23 September 2017. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  22. ^ Orde, Sabine am (10 March 2021). "Immobilienhai Henning Conle: Der große AfD-Finanzier?". Die Tageszeitung (in German). ISSN 0931-9085. Archived from the original on 8 August 2023. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
  23. ^ a b Riedel, Katja (20 September 2021). "AfD: Strafverfahren im Parteispendefall um Alice Weidel eingestellt". Süddeutsche.de (in German). Archived from the original on 20 September 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  24. ^ "German far-right party assailed over report of extremist meeting". AP News. 18 January 2024. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  25. ^ ""Rolle wie im Dritten Reich": AfD-Weidel erhebt schwere Vorwürfe gegen die Kirche" (in German). Archived from the original on 26 December 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  26. ^ "SZ-Online: Weidel provoziert Kirchen mit Vergleich zur Nazi-Zeit". 9 April 2018. Archived from the original on 9 April 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  27. ^ Wildman, Sarah (5 July 2017). "The German far right is faltering. They're hoping a lesbian mom can reenergize the party". Vox. Archived from the original on 5 July 2017. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
  28. ^ Connolly, Kate (22 January 2024). "Far-right AfD leader vows to campaign for Brexit-style EU exit vote in Germany". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  29. ^ Klein, Dennis (31 July 2017). "AfD macht Wahlkampf gegen Homo- und Transsexuelle". queer.de (in German). Archived from the original on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  30. ^ "Germany's far-right AfD leader: 'Margaret Thatcher is my role model'". The Guardian. 29 October 2017. Archived from the original on 29 October 2017.
  31. ^ "Die Positionen der AfD-Spitzenkandidatin". Manager Magazin (in German). 25 April 2017. Archived from the original on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  32. ^ "ZEIT ONLINE | Lesen Sie zeit.de mit Werbung oder im PUR-Abo. Sie haben die Wahl". Archived from the original on 4 August 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  33. ^ a b c Charter, David (18 May 2017). "TV show's 'Nazi slut' jibe at politician is legal, say judges". The Times. Berlin. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 18 May 2017.
  34. ^ "AfD leader loses case versus German TV show that calls her 'Nazi bitch'". Reuters. 17 May 2017. Archived from the original on 18 May 2017. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  35. ^ "Satiriker darf AfD-Frau Weidel als "Nazi-Schlampe" bezeichnen". sueddeutsche.de (in German). 17 May 2017. ISSN 0174-4917. Archived from the original on 17 May 2017. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  36. ^ "German far-right leader accused of illegally hiring Syrian refugee: report". POLITICO. 13 September 2017. Archived from the original on 13 September 2017. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  37. ^ "Far-right AfD leader Alice Weidel 'employed Syrian refugee as cleaner'". Deutsche Welle. Archived from the original on 14 September 2017. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  38. ^ "Lead election candidate of far-right German party secretly employed Syrian asylum seeker as cleaner". The Independent. 13 September 2017. Archived from the original on 14 September 2017. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
  39. ^ "Niemiecka polityk wywołała oburzenie swoim wpisem. Beata Szydło komentuje". pap.pl (in Polish). Polish Press Agency. 9 June 2023. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
  40. ^ "AfD-Kandidatin Alice Weidel mit Coming-out auf der Wahlkampf-Bühne: "Ich bin homosexuell"". RTL Next (in German). 21 September 2017. Archived from the original on 22 September 2017. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
  41. ^ Steiner, Thomas (23 April 2017). "Das neue Gesicht der AfD: Wer ist eigentlich Alice Weidel?". Badische Zeitung (in German). Archived from the original on 27 April 2017. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  42. ^ "AfD-Frontfrau Alice Weidel hat einen Wohnsitz in der Schweiz". Die Welt (in German). 29 April 2017. Archived from the original on 29 April 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017.

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