Facts are created in the plenary hall in the state parliament of Saxony-Anhalt. Reconstruction must take place before the constitutive meeting on October 6th: the FDP will be out in the future, the BSW will be in. But the biggest change in the seating arrangement is different. The AfD is moving from the right to the center. The AfD bloc with 39 MPs will sit directly opposite the lectern during debates in the future - it is a visible sign from the election winner that he wants to set the tone in the country in the future.
The AfD also appeared confident on another topic. The group proposes that the committees should in future consist of 12 instead of the current 13 members. However, the state parliament administration has recommended a composition of 11 members.
11 or 12 MPs - that makes a difference
Size makes a difference: With a strength of 12 politicians, the AfD could take 6 places - and would therefore have great creative power. Although it would not have its own majority, there would be a stalemate of 6:6 votes. This means that all applications and all decisions could be blocked by the AfD, said the parliamentary managing director of the CDU parliamentary group, Stefan Ruland, after a deliberation in the state parliament.
With a committee of 11, the AfD would have five representatives, so it would have to coordinate with other parliamentary groups. The AfD was the strongest force in the state elections on September 6th with 43.8 percent. The CDU, Left, Greens and SPD together have 39 seats in parliament, and the AfD also has 39 members. The BSW has 5 representatives, the majority is 42 votes.
Several groups are considering legal action
On Friday, representatives from the AfD, CDU, SPD, Greens, Left and BSW met in the so-called Vor-Elstenrat to discuss the committees. There was no solution, the next round is planned for September 30th. If committees of 12 are established, several factions intend to file a lawsuit with the state constitutional court because they do not see the election results reflected in the majority.
The committees in which the majority of the substantive work in Parliament takes place should reflect the majority situation as in the plenary session. The principle of mirror image is also mentioned. The committees discuss bills and motions and hold hearings. In the past, concerns of the smaller factions and the opposition were often taken into account.
They now fear that this will change. However, representatives of other factions reject the AfD's move primarily because they do not see it as reflecting the election results. It is not constitutional for a faction that does not have a majority in parliament to occupy half of the seats in a committee, said the SPD's parliamentary manager, Falko Grube. If the AfD and BSW pull this off together, then “we will go to the state constitutional court”.
AfD politician Rausch could become president
The size of the committee is finally determined by the rules of procedure, which the state parliament could decide on October 6th after the election of the state parliament president. The parliamentary managing director of the AfD, Tobias Rausch, appeared ready to talk after the consultation. “In principle, we do not exclude either option,” said Rausch, referring to the question of whether there should be 11 or 12 representatives on the committees.
It's about the ability to compromise, but the state parliament lawyers also made it clear in a statement that the AfD's proposal was constitutional, emphasized Rausch. There are always deviations in the calculations.
Rausch could take a prominent position in the new state parliament. When asked, the AfD politician confirmed a report by “Magdeburger Volksstimme” that he would be willing to become President of the State Parliament. He is available for the office “if my group chooses me on Tuesday,” said the 35-year-old.
Do the SPD and the Greens have to get out of the building?
There are also differences in another point when preparing for parliamentary operations. According to participants in the pre-council of elders, the AfD is considering outsourcing the offices of the SPD and the Greens from the state parliament to other buildings. Above all, this would be a step with a symbolic effect. Due to a renovation, the Left is currently using other premises. If the proposal were to be implemented, the entire left-wing camp would no longer be fully housed in parliament.
“We are still striving to stay in the main building, but there is still no agreement,” said Grube. The parliamentary director of the Greens, Olaf Meister, also rejects the move. «We refused to follow it. There is no factual reason why factions have to move out here,” said Meister. It is unclear how the conflict will end. “But I actually assume that the factions will stay in the main building.”
