AfD state leader in Lower Saxony faces charges over party donation handling

The Hanover State Prosecutor’s Office announced that it has brought formal charges against Ansgar Schledde, the AfD’s state chairman in Lower Saxony, for alleged breaches of the Parties Act. According to the indictment, Schledde, during his tenure as head of the Ems-Vechte district association, accepted a series of payments deemed to be party donations but did not immediately transfer them to the party’s legally appointed financial officer.

In a separate allegation, he is suspected of having supplied false figures regarding the amount of donations received by the Lower Saxony branch in a national AfD financial statement. The case will now be reviewed by the large criminal chamber of the Hanover Regional Court, which will decide whether to open a main trial. Schledde said the charges were not surprising, that he remains confident, and that he fully rejects the allegations, insisting he has always complied with the law.