IN PICS: Trump, Brexit and AfD all targeted at Düsseldorf's Rosenmontag parade

After a very stormy Sunday, costume-clad carnival-revellers showed up en mass for the famous Rosenmontag parade, held annually in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The Local's Rachel Loxton was among them.

The rainy weather didn't stop these colourful carnival Jecken, a local word for participants, from coming to the parade.

"Everybody's happy, look around at the floats," Thorsten Schaar of the Düsseldorf tourism board told The Local, gesturing to the parade. "Everybody will have a lot of fun today."

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Photo: DPA

As usual the celebration was multicultural, with many nationalities represented in the flag-baring floats.

"Everybody comes together and everybody can celebrate together. It doesn't matter where you're from!" costumed Sonja Weyers from Düsseldorf told The Local.

True to its founding nature, the floats also stayed political, poking fun at many German and international news topics. Big themes included the recent controversal elections in the east German state of Thuringia, the fatal shootings at two shisha bars in Hanau last week and climate change.

READ ALSO: 'It's absolute chaos': Does Düsseldorf host Germany's best carnival celebration?

One particularly playful float showed the "carnival virus" overpowering the coronavirus, which led to a carnival cancellation this past weekend in Venice.

Others depicted the search to find a CDU candidate to replace Merkel as chancellor, lining up the current contenders.

They also poked fun at the notoriously right-wing leader of Thuringia's AfD party, and the election debacle which he helped spark earlier this month.

Photo: DPA

Several floats also depicted the tragic shooting in Hanau near Frankfurt last week. "Actions come out of words" is written across the face of an angry man with a gun in his mouth.

Another showed Swedish teen climate activist Greta Thunberg confronting US President Donald Trump dressed as the clown Pennywise.

There were also several Brexit-themed floats, such as one expressing Scotland's desire to remain in the EU.

And on a hopeful note, Iran's president Hassan Rouhani was pictured embracing US President Donald Trump, baring the classic adage of "Make love, not war."

Photo: DPA