AfD as obstructionist and enemy of justice? - Göring-Eckardt warns of blocking minority in Thuringia

Vice President of the Bundestag Katrin Göring-Eckardt fears that the AfD could block important decisions and paralyze the judiciary following election successes in eastern Germany. This could happen if the far-right party were to gain a third of the seats in the state parliament, a so-called blocking minority, the Green politician told the German Press Agency. She referred to her home state of Thuringia in particular. "A lot depends on the outcome of the elections in Thuringia for democracy."

A new state parliament will be elected in Thuringia in September, as well as in Saxony and Brandenburg. The AfD is number one in the polls in all three states. While it recently scored around 24% in Brandenburg, it was around 30% in Thuringia and Saxony. A blocking minority of one third of state parliamentary seats is conceivable with such figures if several small parties fall just short of the five percent threshold. In Thuringia, this could affect the Greens, who are currently polling at around four percent, but also the FDP.

In view: the Judicial Election Committee

"The fewer parties there are in the state parliament, the more seats the AfD can occupy there," said Göring-Eckardt. "The Greens in parliament are a safeguard against the far right." This is important for the judiciary, for example. "The judiciary in Thuringia is facing a generational change 35 years after the peaceful revolution. Many judges and public prosecutors will be retiring in the coming years."

The succession is decided by the judges' election committee, which is largely determined by the state parliament, with a two-thirds majority. With a blocking minority, the AfD could prevent replacements. "Then the rule of law can no longer function properly," said Göring-Eckardt. "This is not an abstract problem, but can affect every Thuringian." A two-thirds majority is also required to dissolve the state parliament.

The AfD is running an "election campaign of self-harm with nice posters and slogans" in Thuringia, said the Green politician. "But the AfD's intention is exactly that: to destabilize democracy and the rule of law. The election is about whether the free democratic basic order will endure in the coming years."

Cancel Culture's accusations of "forgetting history"

The Greens not only have weak poll ratings in Thuringia, but also in Saxony and Brandenburg. In the election campaign, the AfD and the Sahra Wagenknecht alliance in particular are attacking green climate protection projects such as the expansion of green electricity, the switch to heat pumps for heating and the move away from cars with combustion engines.

Göring-Eckardt said: "Even if BSW and AfD are polemicizing against climate protection: We will continue to put the issue front and center." She understands that upheaval causes people stress. But: "Promising that nothing will ever have to change again is a big scam."

BSW chairwoman Sahra Wagenknecht accuses the Greens of being the main drivers of an "authoritarian cancel culture" with "totalitarian traits". Göring-Eckardt rejected this: "The accusations of a new dictatorship or cancel culture are completely out of touch with history. You can say anything in our country today, but you have to expect that someone else will have a different opinion. That wasn't possible in Thuringia 40 years ago. We constantly risked going to prison."