Scholz worries

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged mainstream parties to exclude “far-right extremists” after the preliminary results showed that the AfD in Thuringia came first and second in Saxony in Sunday’s regional elections in Germany.

Olaf Scholz, the German Chancellor, urged mainstream parties to exclude “far-right extremists” after the preliminary results showed that the Alternative for Germany (AfD), which he classified as “far-right,” came first in Thuringia and second in Saxony in Sunday’s regional elections in Germany, with a new, populist force firmly establishing itself on the country’s political scene on the left, as reported by The Guardian.

In the two elections held in the former communist eastern region, voters clearly expressed their dissatisfaction with the mainstream German political parties, with the AfD coming first in Thuringia with 32.8% of the vote and second in Saxony with 30.6% in the preliminary results.

Scholz called the results “bitter” and “worrying.”

“Our country cannot and must not get used to this. The AfD damages Germany. It weakens the economy, divides society, and ruins the reputation of our country”
– said Scholz, adding that the worst predictions that the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) could first drop out of the state parliament did not come true.

Alice Weidel, the co-leader of the AfD, said:

“This is a historic success for us. This is the first time we have become the strongest force in a state election. This is a requiem for this coalition [in Berlin].”

The AfD, which gained its first mayoral and district council posts last year, but has never joined a federal government. The remaining parties, which consider themselves democratic, have pledged to maintain an opposition “firewall” against the AfD and keep them away from power. The results in Saxony and Thuringia were disastrous for the three governing parties led by Scholz’s center-left federal government, which achieved single-digit percentage shares of the vote in both states, one year before the next general elections in Germany.

Although the result had been predicted for months, the centrist parties were unable to reverse the trend, shocking the political scene.

Participation was high in both states, around 74%.

The left-wing, socially conservative Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW), named after its leader, which calls for higher taxes on the wealthy, tighter immigration and refugee policies, and the cessation of military support for Ukraine, also appealed to the eastern part of the country.

Since no party won an absolute majority, the eight-month-old BSW, which won 11.8% in Saxony and 15.8% in Thuringia according to preliminary results, could be crucial in government formation negotiations in both states.

Wagenknecht told journalists that “this was the first time in the history of the republic” that a party had performed so well on its first attempt in a state election. “This is something we can be proud of,” she said.

In the national vote, the leading conservative opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Saxony – as it did five years ago – won a victory of around 32%. This is good news for Friedrich Merz, the CDU leader, who will challenge Scholz in the national elections.

In Thuringia, the CDU came second behind the AfD with 23.6% and may have to form a coalition government with smaller parties, including Wagenknecht’s.

Merz said that the CDU will never cooperate with “extremists,” but the party has consistently moved to the right, especially in its rhetoric on immigration since Angela Merkel left office in 2021.

Many eastern voters say that more than three decades after national reunification, they have become increasingly disillusioned with mainstream politics, while structural decline, depopulation, and economic underperformance further enhance the feeling that they are still second-class citizens.

The AfD has built a central base [in the east], which now votes for it out of conviction, not just out of disappointment with the other parties
– said André Brodocz, a professor of political science at the University of Erfurt in Thuringia. The migration- and Islamophobic campaign of the AfD spent its last week hammering home the message that the government is “failing” its citizens, while taking advantage of the shock and outrage over the deadly mass stabbing in the western city of Solingen allegedly committed by a rejected Syrian migrant.

Björn Höcke, the AfD co-leader in Thuringia, said at a rally that he and the AfD are the only ones standing in the way of the “cartel parties” seeking to replace the German people with a “multicultural society.”

Tino Chrupalla, the AfD co-leader, spoke about his party receiving the mandate to govern in Thuringia. Regarding the “sensational” result, he added that they are leading by a clear 10% in Thuringia, so they have a clear mandate for governance, which is democracy. He declared that the voters wanted a change of policy in Saxony and Thuringia and that the AfD is ready to negotiate with all parties. Björn Höcke also spoke in Erfurt about wanting to form a coalition government in the state and planning to invite other politicians to the coalition negotiations.

“We are ready to take on the government’s responsibility”
– said Höcke. The CDU governs Saxony in a coalition with the Greens and the Social Democrats. “The Christian Democrats will not form a coalition with the AfD in Thuringia or Saxony,” said Carsten Linnemann, the CDU’s secretary-general, who believes that forming a parliamentary majority will not be easy. Michael Kretschmer, the prime minister of Saxony, believes that his party will be able to continue leading the state government, but “it won’t be easy.”