Several German states have intensified security screenings for public sector employment, requiring applicants to disclose membership in the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. This move follows the decision by the Rhineland-Palatinate interior minister, Michael Ebling of the SPD, to impose restrictions effectively barring AfD members from civil service positions under the pretext of loyalty to the constitution. The AfD, Germany's second-largest party in the Bundestag, has been placed under observation by the domestic intelligence agency in Rhineland-Palatinate, which has prompted these employment restrictions. AfD representatives have criticized these measures as violations of democratic principles and describe them as a form of ideological testing that targets a legally elected party. The crackdown on AfD members' participation in government roles is part of broader efforts by some states to limit the party's influence within public institutions, raising concerns about the state of democracy in Germany.