Frauke Petry, former leader of the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, has announced plans to start her own political movement, with the main focus on a drastic recalibration of State expenditure.
“The gap in the party system is not between the CDU [Christian Democratic Union] and the AfD,” Petry told German newspaper Welt on May 6. What the country was missing was “an anti-statist, libertarian offer”, she said.
“No existing party is demanding what is really necessary: A drastic reduction of the government spending ratio to 25 per cent within five years. That means a reduction of five percentage points per year”, Petry added.
In 2024, government spending amounted to almost 50 per cent of Germany’s gross domestic product – one of the highest ratios in the Western world. Instead of an overbearing State, Petry demanded Germany become an “Eldorado for entrepreneurs”.
She said she had already formed a precursor organisation for the future party in the form of the association Team Freiheit (“Team Freedom”).
That reportedly also included Petry’s husband Marcus Pretzell – a lawyer and right-wing commentator alongside a number of German entrepreneurs.
Besides the mentioned anti-statist stance the party’s upcoming programme would also include “a renewal of Germany’s cultural ties with the West” and a focus on freedom of speech, Petry said.
While the final name for the party has not been chosen yet, she announced she would stand in 2026, starting with the State parliament elections in Baden-Wurttemberg.
Petry, a 49-year-old chemical engineer from Saxony, was one of AfD’s founders and part of the leadership team from its start in 2013 until 2017.
In September 2017, she left due to internal conflicts and ideological differences, primarily with a group around AfD heavyweight Björn Höcke, whose views Petry criticised as “extremist”.
In a 2025 television interview, Petry said she regarded Höcke as a “pure National Socialist”.
After leaving AfD, Petry started another party called Die Blaue Partei, which was unsuccessful and disbanded in 2019.
