Saxony-Anhalt’s State Premier Expresses Doubts Over Coalition Formation Without Federal Support
Saxony-Anhalt’s Minister-President Reiner Haseloff has expressed concerns that his Christian Democratic Union (CDU) may struggle to form a majority government in the state without support from the federal government. Speaking to the Focus, Haseloff stated, “Without a push from the federal government, it will be challenging for us to find majorities in the middle.” He emphasized the importance of the success of the black-red coalition in Berlin, saying, “We need a tailwind to overcome the low trend of around 19 percent in the eastern part of the country since the federal election.”
Haseloff also criticized the Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the state, accusing them of deliberately imitating the National Socialists. The AfD, he claimed, “uses the same articulation patterns that we know from the darkest times of German history.” The state premier criticized the AfD for misusing the parliament as a “screaming box” with most of their contributions being personal and crossing the line of decency.
Haseloff pointed out the Bauhaus, a UNESCO World Heritage site, as an example of the AfD’s attempts to discredit it in the same way the National Socialists did in Weimar a century ago. He warned that the AfD and most of its members aim to bring about a system change, implying a potential threat to the democratic system.