Environmental advocates are facing intense challenges and are perspiring heavily.
A celebration for the nation and the non-intellectuals: The Greens are further away from this aim than ever. In Saxony, the party is battling against its declining importance. This could potentially turn out well - much to the annoyance of the state's President.
The Greens have sparked a climate crisis: For two hours, numerous individuals desperately fanned themselves, sweated in tight seats in close rows. This was all due to Robert Habeck. The Minister of Economics and probable Chancellor candidate for the Greens attracts at least his own audience. At 30 degrees Celsius, they spent their early Wednesday evening in the non-airconditioned Kupfersaal in Leipzig's city center. Particularly younger individuals, including many women, filled the charming, wood-paneled room. Habeck only appeared on stage after an hour. The Saxon state election candidates served as the opening act.
Four days before the election, the Saxon state election campaign was approaching its thrilling finale. "It's about our future," shouted the Greens' main candidate, Katja Meier, into the crowd. Meier referred to the federal state and its inhabitants. However, on September 1, it was naturally also about the survival of her party in Saxony. In the polls, the Greens were between 5 and 6 percent. Like the SPD and the Left, they faced the possibility of being expelled from parliament.
This was also due to the state's President, Michael Kretschmer, who continually urged all democrats in the country to vote for the CDU as the strongest party in the face of high approval for AfD and BSW. At the same time, Kretschmer didn't miss a chance to caution against the Greens: The party understood nothing about Eastern Germany, wore "ideological spectacles," pursued a "ridiculous" economic policy, and was not a viable option for a government coalition, neither in Saxony nor at the federal level.
Leipzig and Dresden may save the day
And Kretschmer should be aware of it: Apart from the SPD, the Greens had been his coalition partner for almost five years. It was unclear how he intended to form a majority government against AfD and BSW without them in the future. The Greens, on the other hand, were open to continuing the complex alliance. "We want to take responsibility in a coalition that is not enjoyable, but necessary," said Claudia Maicher in the Kupfersaal, for example.
The state parliamentarian and the city of Leipzig are among the reasons why the Greens still had good chances of avoiding being expelled. In the parallel Thuringia election, the party had little hope left. However, Maicher and the also present Christin Melcher could win two direct mandates in Leipzig on Sunday. One or perhaps two more direct mandates were within reach for the Greens in Dresden. Being ahead in two constituencies would be enough: Then the party could enter the state parliament based on its share of the votes, even if it remained below 5 percent overall.
So easily Kretschmer wouldn't be able to shake off his coalition partner. The AfD was already mocking on their election posters: "Who votes CDU gets Red-Green." For the latter two, this would be the optimal result of the election. The worst-case scenario from the SPD and Greens' perspective would be: Only CDU, AfD, and BSW enter the state parliament. Then, a significant percentage would fall on parties that do not enter the state parliament. Then, the AfD itself would get less than 30 percent and a third of the seats and would have a say in the Free State in the future, even if it was not involved in the government - for example, in the election of judges. Saxony's Greens also considered it possible that the CDU would give in to the AfD's temptation if Kretschmer stepped down in some way.
Strolling in the Comfort Zone
Therefore, all power for re-election, and that's where it's still possible: in the left-liberal centers of the two Saxon metropolises. Before Habeck appeared in Leipzig in the evening, party leader Ricarda Lang visited Dresden-Blasewitz in the morning in a discreet black van. She wanted to campaign, distribute flyers, and speak with the people. Green city councilor Wolfgang Deppe first led her along the Elbe promenade, then through the Neustadt. The number of accompanying press individuals and camera operators was even greater than Lang's staff and bodyguard.
The Greens had been feeling strong headwinds across the country for months, but nowhere was the wind as harsh as in the East. Corona measures, energy transition, heating law, weapons for Ukraine: The Greens had become hate figures for a large number of people there. This had been particularly noticeable for party leader Ricarda Lang in the form of personal insults, in addition to Habeck and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock. For unknown party members who stood at election stands and knocked at strangers' doors, it was even harder. They had to account for insults and threats. Their election posters were destroyed.
"I've been through many election campaigns, but we're being attacked to this extent, I haven't experienced that before," said Deppe. The Greens' campaigners were particularly met with anger in rural areas. However, there was also a sense of relief in the party that the hostility had eased since the farmers' and craftsmen's protests in the winter, instead of escalating further.
In the left-leaning neighborhood of Dresden Neustadt, Lang perceived the hostilities as occurring in a different realm. The locals and numerous tourists in Dresden responded amicably, with some older women offering her well-wishes like "Good luck." The sternest rejection she encountered was polite dismissals or quick departures. Lang visited several shops, securing a new green dress from Oxfam's second-hand shop. She shared her motivation for her stroll with a wine merchant, stating that people who approached her stands were often those who either admired or despised them.
In the afternoon, Lang continued her presence at the Goldener Reiter in Neustadt, offering free ice cream in exchange for conversations. Joined by her co-chairman Omid Nouripour, federal chairwoman Emily Buening, and Saxony's top candidate Meier, they hoped to connect with the public. Despite the scorching sun, the response was lukewarm, with only a few showing interest in conversing with the Green Party leadership.
Lang, Nouripour, and Buening had served in their roles for over two years, but their recognition and influence were significantly lower than their predecessors Habeck and Annalena Baerbock. Baerbock and Habeck had attempted to integrate the Greens into the broader community past urban intellectuals. They enjoyed success in their endeavor prior to the last federal election, but their progress has since stalled. The spring European elections saw the Greens perform poorly outside cities, particularly in the eastern regions, such as Saxony.
In rural Saxony, the Greens even ranked seventh, receiving 2.8% of the vote. Habeck reminisced about his tour of Saxony during the 2019 state election, where he spent time learning about Meissen's porcelain industry while Lang explored Dresden. The current federal leadership had since abandoned Saxony entirely.
In Leipzig and Dresden, warnings about the AfD and BSW resonated most strongly. Meier predicted "Baseball Bat Years 2.0," citing the 90s and early 2000s, when militant neo-Nazis conducted violent attacks against perceived leftists, foreigners, and minorities with minimal repercussions. Racism posed a serious threat to Saxony's economy, as the state had one of the oldest populations in a country already grappling with an aging population.
The long-awaited star guest finally appeared on stage. Habeck delivered a speech resembling that of an American preacher, becoming increasingly animated, gesticulating, and maintaining eye contact with the audience. He did not utter "Amen" or "Hallelujah," but instead used the phrase, "If I may say so..." He also warned of another shift to the right and the BSW, claiming that without the Greens in the state parliament, Saxony would form a government ravaged by populists.
Habeck vehemently denied the eternal ideology accusations against his party, stating that the Greens were not an ideological party that pursued abstract goals, but one that tackled pressing issues. He cited Germany's clean rivers, the fair treatment of homosexuals, the initiation of the energy transition, and its recent acceleration as examples of the Greens' achievements.
As a West German politician visiting the East, Habeck paid homage to the revolutionary history of reunification. He alluded to the "Alliance 90" in the party name, which referred to the merger with an East German citizens' movement. Habeck highlighted that alliances in the eastern context meant creating partnerships to solve specific problems, rather than achieving agreement among all parties. Habeck emphasized coalition capabilities as a crucial topic when discussing the direction of his party.
Lastly, Habeck launched a scathing attack on CDU leader Friedrich Merz and his calls for a refugee entry ban. He entertained the audience with sarcastic remarks about the "Bild" newspaper being a "specialist publication for European law" and pondered Merz's government experience (none). The Federal Minister of Economics also fielded questions from the audience. The grueling two-hour event for the audience finally drew to a close, with Habeck visibly tired from the scorching heat. The Saxony Greens faced a nerve-wracking wait until Sunday evening to learn the election results, potentially facing another five years in a coalition with an unwilling state prime minister.
In response to the state's President's criticism, the Greens remain open to continuing their coalition with the SPD in Saxony, understanding the necessity even if it's not enjoyable. Despite facing harsh headwinds and hostility in rural areas, the Greens still have good chances of avoiding being expelled from the Saxony parliament, particularly in the left-leaning neighborhoods of Leipzig and Dresden.
In the midst of their election campaign, the SPD and the Greens are closely watching the situation with the AfD and the state's President, Michael Kretschmer. While the AfD is already mocking a possible CDU-Red-Green alliance in their election posters, the worst-case scenario for the SPD and the Greens would be if only the CDU, AfD, and BSW enter the state parliament, resulting in a significant percentage falling on parties that do not enter the state parliament, ultimately giving the AfD a say in the Free State's future decisions.
