For the initial time, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) emerges as the most powerful force, leaving their opponents facing a setback
In the recent Thuringia state elections, the AfD emerges as the dominant force. Just as forecasted, the party, headed by key figure Björn Höcke, claims the most seats in the upcoming state parliament. As per an Infratest Dimap forecast for ARD (6 pm), the party garnered an impressive 30.5% of the votes. The CDU follows closely with 24.5% and the BSW secures 16%.
The incumbent Red-Red-Green coalition suffered a significant blow. The Left, led by Minister President Bodo Ramelow, faltered significantly. The party is projected to only receive 12.5% of the votes - a substantial drop of 18 percentage points. The SPD also saw a decline, with their votes dropping to 7% (-1.2), according to the forecast. Unfortunately, the Greens were unable to surpass the 5% threshold, securing only 4%. Thomas Kemmerich's FDP also failed to regain a seat in the parliament, receiving a meager 1.3%.
Based on the ARD and ZDF projections, the new state parliament's seat distribution might look like this: the AfD securing 30 to 33 seats, CDU with 24 seats, BSW holding 14 to 15 seats, The Left with 11 to 12 seats, and SPD with 6 to 7 seats.
BSW's top candidate, Katja Wolf, referred to her party's results in the state election as "historic". Despite being established only at the beginning of the year, the BSW managed to secure a position in the Erfurt state parliament for the first time. Speaking on Sunday evening after the preliminary election results were announced, Wolf expressed her "goosebumps" during the moment, expressing her "gratitude to all those who made this possible".
Following their dominant performance in the Thuringia state elections, the AfD's leader, Björn Höcke, declared that the party would have substantial influence in the upcoming state parliament. In light of the AfD's success, other established parties such as the CDU and The Left experienced significant drops in their vote shares.
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