Thüringen: Wagenknecht weist Höcke-Angebot zurück

BSW founder Sahra Wagenknecht has rejected Björn Höcke's offer to become Thuringia's Minister-President. In an interview with Deutsche Presse-Agentur, Wagenknecht stated that the position of Thuringia's Minister-President is not a prize that Höcke can give away as he pleases. She emphasized that Mario Voigt, currently serving as Minister-President, has lost confidence, and the BSW in Thuringia must withdraw its support from him.

However, Höcke's offer was deemed neither honest nor serious by Wagenknecht, who noted that a majority of BSW representatives in the Thuringian Landtag oppose the federal leadership and would not vote for her. Wagenknecht also suggested that a genuine solution for Thuringia could only come from a Minister-President rooted in the state, adding that she herself only spent her childhood there.

She accused Höcke of engaging in party politics and tactics, stating that politics should focus on problem-solving rather than such maneuvers. Höcke had invited Wagenknecht to run for Minister-President in Erfurt, but Wagenknecht rejected the proposal, emphasizing that she only has childhood memories of Thuringia and that her party cannot be viewed as a cartel party.

She stressed the need for state-level responsibility and called for an end to the current "Brandmauer" policy, which she deemed a failure. The AfD in Thuringia, currently allied with the BSW and SPD in a so-called "Beatrice Coalition," has recently attempted to initiate another constructive motion of no confidence against Voigt, who is facing pressure due to the revocation of his doctorate by TU Chemnitz.

The AfD plans to propose Wagenknecht as Minister-President, taking advantage of the current political climate to potentially challenge the existing BSW-led government in the upcoming Thuringia Landtag elections.