SPD state party conference - Maier against minority coalition with changing majorities
Thuringia's Social Democrats have made their government aspirations clear after the 2024 state elections. The party must become so strong that it can form stable democratic majorities and end the political blockade in Thuringia, said SPD Chairman and Interior Minister Georg Maier at a party conference in Meiningen on Saturday.
The designated SPD leadership candidate made it clear that a minority coalition with the current opposition parties CDU and FDP with changing majorities was out of the question for the Social Democrats.
"You can kiss a German coalition with changing majorities goodbye. That is not possible with us," said the 56-year-old. It is important to him that the AfD has no influence on decisions, Maier said on the sidelines of the party conference. This could not be ruled out in a government model with changing majorities. Together with the AfD, the CDU and FDP had recently pushed through the reduction of the land transfer tax to 5.0 percent in the state parliament.
In Meiningen, the Social Democrats put the finishing touches to their government program - around 200 amendments to individual passages, such as the use of bodycams by the police or the preservation of Erfurt Airport, were discussed, sometimes controversially. In the end, the program was unanimously adopted.
Continuation of red-red-green?
Since 2014, the SPD has governed with a brief interruption together with Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow 's Left Party and the Greens - from 2020 as a minority coalition that is always dependent on compromises with the opposition in the state parliament. Maier left open whether he wants to continue the red-red-green coalition in 2024, but said that he is "committed to this government".
"We can't rely on the Minister President to somehow fix it," said the SPD leader. It would be irresponsible to just hope "that things will somehow continue". The SPD, which was at nine percent in a representative poll in November, must do everything to become stronger. It is also important that the AfD, with a "flawless fascist" at its head, cannot undermine democracy step by step. Right-wing extremists must not be allowed to make their way to a blocking minority in the state parliament.
According to current election polls, there could also be a difficult majority situation after the 2024 election with a strong AfD of between 32 and 34%, which is being monitored by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution due to right-wing extremist tendencies in Thuringia.
Constitutional amendment possible?
At the party conference, Maier spoke out in favor of a constitutional amendment in Thuringia in order to clearly regulate the election of the Minister President in future. The passage according to which the person with the most yes votes is elected in the third ballot creates a lot of uncertainty, he said. Thuringia should base any changes on regulations in other federal states such as Saxony. A majority of the votes cast in the final ballot would be clear.
In his opinion, a limit on the duration of government formation should also be examined, as well as a passage according to which the state parliament is deemed dissolved if no prime minister is elected within a certain number of months. A constitutional amendment would require a two-thirds majority in the state parliament, which is currently not foreseeable.
General Secretary: SPD "fights" against austerity budget
Maier made it clear that the SPD stood by the welfare state and the defense of democracy. It must continue to sharpen its profile as a social party. In their government program, the Social Democrats advocate, among other things, the introduction of free lunches for all children in daycare centers and schools. In addition, education from kindergarten to master's or academic master's degrees should be free of contributions and fees.
As a guest at the party conference, SPD General Secretary Kevin Kühnert made it clear that the Social Democrats will oppose cuts in the social sector in the further federal budget negotiations for 2024. "Social cuts at the expense of those who have worked their butts off for society is not something we will go along with." The SPD is concerned with a capable state that invests and renews the promise of social cohesion. "The SPD is fighting to ensure that it does not become an austerity budget and that the poorest do not suffer," Kühnert called out.
On the other hand, Kühnert sees scope for cuts to the tax privilege on property sales, where income is currently tax-free after ten years. He also reiterated the SPD's proposal to abolish the tax privilege of spousal splitting for future marriages.
Link to motions and the government program
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Source: www.stern.de
