OpinionAfD: Rossmann and Vorwerk leave lobby group after firewall debate:
The Association of Family Businesses is opening itself up to talks with the AfD ...
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Family Business Group Revises Stance on AfD ContactsRossmann, Vorwerk, and Fritz-Kola quit after the family business association ended its AfD contact ban in late 2025.
- The Family Business Association lifted its ban on contacts with the AfD after 18 months, as moral exclusion failed to change voter behavior.
- Several prominent members, including Rossmann, Vorwerk, and Fritz-Kola, resigned in response to the association's new policy.
- Trumpf's CEO Nicola Leibinger-Kammüller intends to remain a member, advocating a nuanced view of AfD voters, especially locally.
- An AfD politician attended a parliamentary evening for the first time, highlighting the association's political shift and sparking strong criticism.
Therefore we have decided together that we will lift this firewall, in the sense of a total contact ban with the party.— Marie-Christine Ostermann, president of Die Familienunternehmer, in an exclusive interview with WirtschaftsWoche
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