A German court ruled on Friday that the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party must grant national journalists access to an election night event in the state of Thuringia.

Several well-known German media outlets have taken legal action against the AfD in Thuringia after the AfD denied their reporters access to the election results party.

The news magazine “Spiegel”, the Axel Springer newspapers “Welt” and “Bild” as well as the left-wing “taz” argued in court that the AfD’s decision was a threat to press freedom.

The verdict is not yet final; the AfD could appeal.

On September 1st, Thuringian voters will elect a new state parliament, and opinion polls show that the AfD is well ahead. Thuringian AfD state chairman Björn Höcke is known throughout Germany for his radical views and highly controversial statements. He has already been convicted twice for deliberately quoting a Nazi slogan in speeches.

The spokesman for the Thuringian AfD regional association, Torben Braga, told the dpa that they had not yet received the decision and did not want to comment until he could review the ruling.

Braga and other leading representatives of the AfD in Thuringia had explained to the dpa a few days ago that space in the party building was limited, which is why they had decided to invite only a small list of journalists who regularly report on Thuringian politics and the AfD state party.

“The one venue we have can hold 200 people, so it will be full. We have reserved 50 places for the press and radio,” said Thuringia’s AfD co-chair Stefan Möller. “We have to draw the line somewhere.”

Previously, leading representatives of the AfD had indicated that they would cancel the event if a court ordered them to allow more journalists.

The exact location of the election night party was kept secret due to security concerns, as the AfD reported.