Audi chief executive Gernot Döllner has faced a backlash from German labour leaders and politicians after appearing alongside U.S. President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Georgia to announce plans for a $4 billion factory.
Christiane Benner, head of Germany’s IG Metall union and deputy chair of Volkswagen’s supervisory board, said Döllner’s appearance breached Audi’s rules on political neutrality ahead of elections.
“Döllner is also in flagrant breach of his own company’s rules, which expressly require political neutrality in the run-up to elections,” Benner said.
Audi did not immediately comment. However, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters that the company’s management board had approved an exception to its code of conduct before Döllner appeared alongside Trump.
The planned factory, Audi’s first in the U.S., would produce up to 200,000 SUVs annually. The announcement was made at a Trump campaign rally in Perry, near Macon, Georgia.
The investment still requires approval from the supervisory board of Audi’s parent company, Volkswagen, which includes German labour representatives.
The move follows lengthy discussions about establishing U.S. production to avoid import tariffs that cost Audi approximately $1.3 billion last year.
Volkswagen supervisory board member Daniela Cavallo acknowledged the potential business case for local production but criticised Döllner’s decision to announce the investment at a political rally.
“From a pure business perspective, localising Audi’s production in the U.S. may make sense,” Cavallo said.
However, she said Döllner had “allowed himself to be turned into a puppet in the propaganda show” of Trump.
Cavallo expressed reservations about the appearance but did not formally oppose it, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
Audi’s code of conduct prohibits public appearances with political parties or politicians standing for election, as well as sponsorship of such events, during the three months before an election. Exceptions can be authorised by the company’s management board, according to the source.
Trump has previously expressed support for Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, prompting concern among the country’s political and corporate establishment.
German automotive expert Ferdinand Dudenhöffer drew comparisons between Döllner and Tesla chief executive Elon Musk, who has also appeared on stage with Trump.
Olaf Lies, premier of Lower Saxony, which is Volkswagen’s second-largest shareholder, said a campaign rally was an inappropriate venue for announcing such a major investment.
“A campaign rally cannot be the right place to announce an investment of this magnitude,” Lies said.
He added that the appearance had unsettled employees already concerned about job security in Germany.
The controversy comes as Volkswagen seeks to slash costs and cut around 100,000 jobs as it grapples with heavy losses in China, U.S. tariffs and the costly shift to electric vehicles.
German factories face mounting pressure, with Audi’s Neckarsulm plant among four Volkswagen sites facing possible closure from the beginning of the next decade.
Metzler analysts said the contrast between plans to create jobs in the U.S. and cuts to production capacity elsewhere made the announcement difficult to justify publicly. Nevertheless, they maintained that manufacturing vehicles in the U.S. was the right commercial decision.
Trump has championed tariffs as a way to boost U.S. manufacturing jobs ahead of the 3 November midterm elections.
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