Political upheavals in Saxony and Thuringia: ways out of the crisis

Political upheavals in Saxony and Thuringia: ways out of the crisis

Erfurt/Dresden/Berlin (dpa) - After the turbulent state elections in Saxony and Thuringia, a change is emerging in the political landscape. While the traffic light coalition continues to exist in Berlin, there are traces of uncertainty and perplexity regarding the upcoming challenges. In the two federal states, the complicated negotiations on potential majorities now begin because the established parties have to deal with a new reality.

The CDU has made it clear that it rejects a collaboration with the left or the AfD. An alliance with the new alliance of Sahra Wagenknecht is also excluded, at least under the current conditions. According to political scientist Oliver Lembcke, the CDU faces the question of whether it should open up to cooperation with the Left Party. However, one step in this direction could re -infect the discussion about the delimitation to the AfD, which the party wants to maintain.

The role of the AfD and its possibilities of influence

The AfD has achieved remarkable election sequence in Thuringia and Saxony and is now calling for the government to be involved as an election winner. With over 30 percent of the votes, she has achieved a record result in Saxony. The problem, however, remains that nobody wants to enter into a coalition with the party classified by constitutional protectors as a right -wing extremist. In Thuringia, the AfD even threatens with a "blocking minority" , which means that it can block decisions that require a two-thirds majority, including the choice of constitutional judges. The AfD sees itself as an indispensable player for stability and speaks of a "design minority" .

protests and turnout

Although there was massive protests against right -wing extremism in Dresden and Erfurt shortly before the election, these demonstrations did not seem to have weakened the AfD significantly. Around 400 people demonstrated against the strengthening of the AfD on election evening in Erfurt, but the turnout in both countries was still high, which indicates a strong political interest of the citizens.

The polarization between the AfD supporters and its opponents remains. Höcke, the top candidate of the AfD, was able to mobilize his followers through provocative words such as "gender gaga" and "cargo bike" , which heated up the emotions in the election events. To what extent a dialogue between the conflict parties is possible remains questionable.

outlook on Brandenburg

In about three weeks, the elections are pending in Brandenburg. This is seen as an important test for the SPD, which defends the office of Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke there. Failure could lead to a fundamental debate in the SPD about the leadership, especially through Chancellor Olaf Scholz. SPD general secretary Kevin Kühnert has already indicated that dissatisfaction with the current government can be felt in the eastern federal states. In view of the political uncertainty in Thuringia and Saxony, this election could have a decisive impact on the stability in Brandenburg.