Prime Minister election
Search for compromise: Will Thuringia’s left vote for CDU leader Voigt?
Updated 12/10/2024Reading time: 3 min.
The coalition of CDU, BSW and SPD in Thuringia is standing – but in the prime ministerial election on Thursday it is one vote short in the first rounds. Now there is an offer to the left.
Thuringia’s coalition partners CDU, BSW and SPD are approaching the left so that the prime minister election does not become a shambles because of possible AfD votes. Two days before the planned election of CDU leader Mario Voigt in the state parliament on Thursday, the factions of the so-called Blackberry Coalition of the Left in Erfurt made an offer. The background is that the CDU, BSW and SPD only have 44 of 88 seats in the state parliament.
“Requirements specification” for dealing with each other
The offer is about the active involvement of the left as a constructive opposition in the state parliament – a kind of set of rules between the three coalition members and the opposition faction, said Voigt in Erfurt. He used the word “specifications”, which was coined by the outgoing Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow (Left) for the future parliamentary dealings of the four factions.
For weeks there has been a tug of war between the Left and the coalition partners over a written agreement which, according to the Left’s wishes, should contain the waiver of majorities together with the AfD.
Voigt said the coalition was offering the Left an official, monthly discussion format with the parliamentary managers of the four factions. The Left is also being invited to contribute its ideas to key reform projects, said Voigt after a meeting with representatives of the four parties in Erfurt.
In return, it is expected that the first round of the prime ministerial election on Thursday will “work reasonably” and that a budget can be drawn up and passed quickly. Voigt described this offer as a “3-plus-1 format” – the core elements are the election of the prime minister, the budget and setting the course for reforms.
Thuringia’s SPD leader Georg Maier emphasized that the offer is not a toleration agreement. “It’s not like a contract is being signed here.” The CDU had always rejected a written agreement with the Left. An incompatibility decision prohibits the Christian Democrats from cooperating with the Left.
The Thuringian Left leader Christian Schaft said after the meeting that the blackberry parties had moved towards the left. “We’re continuing to talk now, but I would say it’s possible that a solution can be found.” Schaft announced that the proposal should be discussed at the Left parliamentary group meeting this Wednesday.
According to the invitation to the state parliament meeting, only Voigt is running for the blackberry coalition in the prime ministerial election on December 12th – he has no opposing candidate. According to the constitution, an absolute majority of 45 votes is required in the first two rounds of electing the head of government. The three partners who want to sign their coalition agreement this Wednesday are missing one vote.
Höcke candidacy open
Whether the AfD, as the strongest faction with 32 seats, will nominate its leader Björn Höcke in the second round of voting will only be decided shortly before the election on Thursday. Höcke has not ruled this out. Applications are no longer possible for the first round because there is a 48-hour deadline.
For days there has been discussion in Thuringia about how Voigt should behave if he were to be elected in the first round with recognizable votes from the AfD, which is classified as proven right-wing extremist by the state Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Thuringia.
The Left has so far stated that there will be no individual votes from them, but only from the twelve MPs together. In the third round of voting, Voigt received the relative majority that his coalition had. Whoever gets the most votes is then elected.
The President of the State Parliament names the rules for the third round of voting
For years there has been discussion in Thuringia about the interpretation of the constitution if there is a third round of voting in the prime ministerial election with only one candidate. State Parliament President Thadäus König has now decided on a variant. König said in Erfurt that he follows the majority opinion in the legal literature and will not take into account the opposing votes in the event of an unrivaled candidacy in the third round. “This means that the election proposal is accepted if there are one or more yes votes.”