In what the mainstream daily Die Welt described as “a bombshell” (Paukenschlag), BSW party founder Sahra Wagenknecht announced an extraordinary congress to remove the BSW leadership in Thuringia, thus opening the way for an anti-establishment government in the state.
The announcement came after the BSW faction in the Thuringia state parliament demonstratively voted for a continued support for Governor Voigt (CDU), despite the fact that the BSW national leadership had called for pulling out of the ruling coalition.
Voigt, who has been hit by a plagiarism scandal, is thoroughly discredited, and the BSW has lost voters through its support for Voigt, Wagenknecht said.
At the same time, the Thuringia BSW follows the failing “Brandmauer” (Firewall) policy against the AfD, which Wagenknecht wants to drop in favor of pragmatic dialogue on issues. In her interview with Die Welt, Wagenknecht spoke for the first time in favor of an independent candidate for Thuringia who would carry out that policy.
“Our model would be a nonpartisan Minister-President who is capable and also willing to govern with shifting majorities, rather than marginalizing a large portion of the electorate. That’s a model that would make sense elsewhere, as well, because the current approach—which is driving more and more voters toward the AfD by simply ignoring them—is not a sensible path. And we wouldn’t—or rather, I think we shouldn’t—continue down that path.”
Previously, AfD state leader Björn Höcke had announced that his party would file for a vote of no confidence against Voigt and propose an independent candidate to replace him.