Saxony‑Anhalt Minister‑President Sven Schulze (CDU) has drawn a number of lessons for his own state election campaign from the defeat of Spitzenkandidat Manuel Hagel and the South‑West CDU in the Baden‑Württemberg state election. “Polls are one thing; the result on election day is something else” Schulze told “Die Welt”. The Greens had lagged behind the CDU by several percentage points for many months – at times up to 16 % – but that was not reflected in the final numbers. “Even more important is that ultimately it’s all about the Spitzenkandidat – less about programmes and parties”.
Like in Baden‑Württemberg, a “focus on two parties” will dominate Saxony‑Anhalt, says Schulze. “In the South‑West it was the CDU and the Greens; in Saxony‑Anhalt it will be CDU versus the AfD. As we saw in Baden‑Württemberg, the Spitzenkandidaten are decisive, so the campaign in Saxony‑Anhalt will be heavily tailored to me”. As minister‑president he can demonstrate through his government work how he envisions the state’s future. He will not let polls or interim results distract him until the final day, when the electorate decides.
Schulze also assessed the impact of federal politics on state elections: “The issues that matter in state elections vary greatly from one state to another, but the truth remains that state elections are never completely detached from the evaluation of the federal government”. He said the CDU has only recently given the federal government a slight edge. “That advantage, however, must become much stronger in the coming months”.
Schulze announced that the CDU in his state will present a “clear, bourgeois‑conservative profile”. “We will speak on the issues that affect our state and will decide what is right and good for Saxony‑Anhalt – not whether we may upset someone with a particular demand or wording. In a campaign you sometimes have to offend to be noticed”. As an example, he cited his call for a reform of the European carbon‑credit trading system for industry. “I know that in parts of the federal government, especially the SPD, I will not only get approval but also criticism”. He believes the reform is correct, “because it is good and necessary for our economy”.