Outrage in Germany as far right becomes kingmaker in Thuringia
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Protests have broken out in the eastern German state of Thuringia after the far-right AfD party helped oust state premier Bodo Ramelow, replacing him with another candidate.
Mr Ramelow’s Die Linke (Left) won Thuringia’s state elections in October and agreed a coalition deal on Tuesday.
But, in what is being described as an earthquake in German politics, he then lost the vote for state premier.
The AfD unexpectedly threw its weight behind another party’s candidate.
For mainstream parties to collaborate with the AfD is considered a taboo, and both Chancellor Angela Merkel’s local CDU and the liberal FDP ended up on the same side, backing the liberal candidate, Thomas Kemmerich.
New Thuringia Prime Minister Thomas L. Kemmerich (L) of FDP shakes hands with Bjoern Hoecke of AfD after Thuringia state regional elections in Erfurt, Germany, 05 February 2020. The Free Democratic Party (FDP) politician was surprisingly elected Prime Minister of German state Thuringia on 05 February 2020. Members of Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and right-wing populist party Alternative for Germany (AfD) voted together. EPA-EFE/BODO SCHACKOW
No state premier has ever taken office before with the aid of the AfD.
The anti-immigration party is the biggest opposition force in Germany’s national parliament, the Bundestag. Thuringia is one of its heartlands and the regional AfD is seen as even more extreme there, because it is led by Björn Höcke, one of its most controversial figures.
