After the CDU election fiasco in Saxony-Anhalt, the deputy state party leader of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Tino Schomann, is calling for the resignation of Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU). “He has to get off the chair and someone else has to get up,” he told the German Press Agency when asked. The NDR had previously reported.
“Yesterday's press conference was simply terrible and not sincere,” said Schomann about the Chancellor's statements in which he stated that reform plans had to be “conveyed emotionally.” That's not empathetic and no one believes him anymore, explained Schomann, who is also the district administrator in the northwest Mecklenburg district. He also accused Merz of technical mistakes. “He can’t get the country under control,” complained Schomann.
However, the district administrator spoke out against a new election and instead advocated for an internal regulation. There are several characters within the Union who lack empathy and who are also assertive. From the CDU he named Federal Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul and Bundestag President Julia Klöckner, from the CSU he named the Prime Minister of Bavaria, Markus Söder, and Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt.
The Green federal leadership is open to the BSW proposal for a non-partisan Prime Minister. “This unprecedented situation requires flexibility and creativity,” said Green Party leader Felix Banaszak on the website “t‑online”. “We as the Greens do not block the idea of a non-partisan candidate for the office of Prime Minister.” Banaszak is thus supporting the Green Party's top candidate Susan Sziborra-Seidlitz, who had previously made similar statements.
The CDU state parliamentary group in Saxony-Anhalt has elected Prime Minister Sven Schulze as its new chairman. Two days after the CDU's defeat in the state elections, Schulze prevailed in a battle vote in Magdeburg against the previous parliamentary group leader Guido Heuer, according to WELT information. Schulze received 8 votes, Heuer 7.
BSW founder Sahra Wagenknecht has spoken out in favor of electing an AfD politician as state parliament president in Saxony-Anhalt. “Whether we elect someone depends, of course, on the specific candidacy,” Wagenknecht told “Stern”. “But it is undisputed for us that the AfD, as by far the strongest faction, is entitled to the office of President of Parliament.” The newly elected parliamentary managing director of the BSW state parliamentary group, John Lucas Dittrich, said in Magdeburg: “The AfD will receive our votes for the state parliament president.” It would be the first time nationwide that the right-wing party would provide the president of a state parliament.
The BSW in Saxony-Anhalt has announced that it will also talk to the AfD about cooperation. "For us there is no firewall. We will talk to all parties," said the newly elected parliamentary group leader Thomas Schulze. When asked whether he expressly ruled out a coalition with the AfD, Schulze answered evasively. He emphasized: "The current government coalition has been voted out. We have to accept that and that is what we call democracy." Regarding the AfD's performance, he said: "Whoever gets well over 40 percent is the election winner." Before the election, the BSW ruled out a coalition with the AfD.
Former Chancellor Angela Merkel called the AfD's electoral success in Saxony-Anhalt “simply shocking”. The former CDU party leader made the comments at Deutsche Telekom's Digital X digital trade fair in Cologne. “As a CDU member, my heart is bleeding,” said the Christian Democrat, who was Chancellor from 2005 to 2021. “This is a turning point, a real turning point, that we are experiencing in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany.”
She finds it worrying that facts no longer have such a high priority for many citizens and that feelings are instead referred to. As an example, she cited what she described as a factual statement that unemployment had fallen and individual prosperity had increased in Saxony-Anhalt. “And then the top candidate (of the AfD, Ulrich Siegmund, ed.) says: ‘That’s possible, but it’s not felt that way’.” One should not allow such an attitude to gain majority support, said Merkel. “It was the progress of the Enlightenment that the sum of people could agree on facts.” If feeling takes over and facts are no longer valued as the most important thing, that would be a step backwards in civilization.
The vice-chairman of the CDU in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and district administrator in northwest Mecklenburg, Tino Schomann, is calling for a change at the top of the federal government. “Berlin bears the main responsibility,” said the local politician, referring to the CDU’s defeat in Saxony-Anhalt. The Chancellor is stoking people's fears and breaking promises. "We need a personality who conveys empathy, credibility and reliability. He has shown that he cannot do that. In my opinion, he is unsuitable for the position in order to unite the country and solve the problems in the country," he told NDR. A different character is needed at the top of the government. “There needs to be more pressure from the grassroots,” said Schomann.
After the AfD victory, the CDU social wing is against a personnel debate. “To believe that everything will be fine overnight with an exchange of heads is adventurous,” said the chairman of the Christian Democratic Workers’ Association (CDA), Dennis Radtke, to the “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger”. “Especially in light of our constitution, you don’t simply replace the top man like you would a coach or sports director in football.” What is now more important is “that we do not stumble into a government crisis after the shocking election results in Saxony-Anhalt,” said Radtke. At the same time, he called for clarification about the Union's political course.
Union parliamentary group vice-president Sepp Müller (CDU) sees no danger that CDU politicians could help the AfD gain a government majority in Saxony-Anhalt. CDU state leader Sven Schulze made sure of this. When asked whether there could be defections from his party, Müller said in the RTL/ntv interview: "I firmly assume that he (Schulze) can put his hand in the fire to ensure that this question you ask is answered with no."
