AGI Profiles: Beatrix von Storch

Kiana Bussa

Halle Foundation/AGI Intern

Kiana Bussa is a research intern at AGI in summer 2024. Ms. Bussa is an undergraduate student at the University of Georgia where she majors in International Affairs and minors in International Human Rights and Security and Data Analytics for Public Policy. At UGA, Ms. Bussa has conducted independent research with the GLOBIS Human Rights Research Lab and developed policy-related skills in the Security Leadership Program with the Center for International Trade and Security. In her spare time, she debates with the Phi Kappa Literary Society.

Member of the Bundestag and Deputy Leader of the Alternative for Germany

Beatrix von Storch, born Beatrix Amelie Ehrengard Eilika, Duchess of Oldenburg, is the maternal granddaughter of Adolf Hitler’s finance minister, Johann Ludwig Graf Schwerin von Krosigk, who was sentenced to ten years in prison in Nuremberg for war crimes. She is the paternal granddaughter of Duke Nikolaus von Oldenburg, a member of both the Nazi Party and the SA, the party’s paramilitary force. She is a distant relative of many European aristocrats, including the British royal family. She is also a member of the Bundestag. Surprised? There’s more.

Von Storch worked for ten years as a lawyer focused on property rights (her husband was unable to regain possession of property in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern during unification, which she resented) before becoming a founding member of the Alternative for Germany (AfD). She was first elected to the European Parliament through AfD’s party list in 2014 and joined the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group. She was later evicted from the group for her extreme statement on shooting women and children entering Germany illegally. She eventually joined the Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy (EFDD) group, led by Nigel Farage, with whom von Storch has a close professional relationship (Farage even campaigned with von Storch). In 2017, she vacated her seat in the European Parliament to join the Bundestag. She has been deputy leader of the party since 2015.

All AfD politicians build their political personas around stricter immigration policies. Even within her own party, however, von Storch is a standout. Her language around immigration is distinctly accusatory and contentious. One of her most tame controversies was when she blamed players with an immigrant background for the German national team’s loss in the 2016 European Soccer Championship tournament. That statement was overshadowed by another statement earlier that year in which von Storch supported German border guards using force against immigrants—including children—illegally entering the country. A couple of years later, she accused the Cologne police of supporting “barbaric, gang-raping Muslim hordes of men” in response to a New Year’s Eve tweet released in Arabic.

One of her most infamous controversies occurred in 2018, when she falsely implied that the perpetrator of the Münster van attack was a refugee (police confirmed that there was no indication of a link to Islamic terrorism). In response, the Christian Democrats (CDU) demanded she resign from her seat in the Bundestag. Von Storch eventually apologized for the comment but did tweet that the man was an “imitator of Islamist terror.” She also used the opportunity to criticize Angela Merkel, stating, “I don’t ever want to be like Angela Merkel, who doesn’t admit her mistakes.” When asked about the large mistake, then AfD co-leader Alexander Gauland said, “For me the matter is resolved.”

Despite the absurdity of such statements, von Storch is often defended by her party. Following the “hordes of men” comment, for instance, von Storch’s Twitter account was suspended and she was placed under investigation for incitement. In response, party co-leader Alice Weidel expressed support for von Storch and made similar comments. When von Storch was expelled from the ECR group in the European Parliament for her remark on shooting immigrants, the AfD rallied behind her, suggesting that her removal was actually a conspiratorial ploy by Angela Merkel and David Cameron. The AfD accused the government of “harassment and bullying” after von Storch was fined 1,000 euros for her comments against transgender members of Parliament in June 2024.

Von Storch also tends to be defiant in the face of pushback. When she was attacked with dog feces in August 2023, she tweeted, “We fight with arguments, AfD-haters fight with feces. No matter what vile means they resort to, we will fight unwaveringly and now more decisively for the spiritual and moral renewal of our nation.” When asked about anti-Semitism in the party by Deutsche Welle, von Storch was “defiant” and deflected blame toward “leftist artists and publicists.” When two people in clown costumes threw a cream-filled cake at her in 2016, she remarked, “People with no arguments tear down posters, burn cars, and disrupt meetings with pies.”

Why does the party rally behind her? Maybe because of her family’s large network of influential conservative organizations. Von Storch and her husband run a campaign group, a think-tank, and at least two websites devoted to conservative issues. The most notable of these organizations is Zivile Koalition (Civil Coalition), which she and six other members of her family launched in 2006. It is an online lobbying organization focused on spreading right-wing ideas. These organizations can bring in large sums: in mid-2013 alone, internal records obtained by Der Spiegel indicate Zivile Koalition raised more than 140,000 euros within a few weeks. Der Spiegel also reported that donations were regularly misused, such as the purchase of 83,812 euros worth of gold bars with donated funds. Other financial irregularities, such as allegedly paying private bills with donations, have also been reported.

Likewise, her husband Sven von Storch maintains a wide network with influential figures. Sven von Storch grew up in Chile after his father was exiled from Germany in 1945. He remains well connected with figures in the region, including former Chilean presidential candidate José Antonio Kast and former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro. Bolsanro received both Sven and Beatrix von Storch at the presidential palace in 2021. Sven von Storch has advised Bolsonaro on foreign affairs. He is a public admirer of Steven Bannon, advisor to former president Donald Trump, and has met with Bannon privately. Sven von Storch was one of many right-wing conservative figures implicated in an extreme WhatsApp group chat started by Erik Prince, the founder of the military contractor Blackwater and the younger brother of Betsy DeVos, the Secretary of Education during the Trump administration.

In a party where controversies seem to be the norm rather than the exception, Beatrix von Storch stands out for her ability to polarize and provoke. Stirring the pot has, so far, consistently assured her place in the political spotlight. As the Bundestag pursues stricter rules on behavior, however, her controversial qualities might begin having more serious consequences. Whether von Storch can reel in her language remains to be seen.