The Alliance for Germany (AfD) legislator departs from the party and the Bundestag faction.
The AfD faction in Germany's federal parliament experiences a departure. Dirk Spaniel bids farewell to the party, accompanied by accusations. These accusations primarily target the party leader, Alice Weidel, and her allies. Weidel's representative dismisses the criticism.
The AfD member representing Stuttgart in Germany's federal parliament, Dirk Spaniel, has officially departed from the AfD and its parliamentary group, as announced on Twitter. "Many had their suspicions, today I have finalized my exit from the AfD and also from the AfD parliamentary group," he wrote.
Additionally, there are allegations emerging against the AfD from Spaniel's end. According to "Tagesschau" and "t-online", he accuses the party of spreading falsehoods about him and utilizing party resources to create a hostile environment towards him.
Spaniel, the former head of the AfD in Baden-Württemberg and a critic of co-party leader Alice Weidel, was not re-nominated to the state list for the next Bundestag election at a state party conference two weeks ago — the culmination of a long-standing conflict between him and the Weidel camp. He had previously announced his resignation from the party at that time.
AfD faction now consists of 76 members
"Everyone can imagine the situation when individuals in Germany gain power who already undermine free opinion formation and democratic processes within the party and demand unconditional loyalty to party leaders," Spaniel is quoted as saying by "Tagesschau" and "t-online". He disapproved of the leadership style of the southwest state association.
Weidel's representative, Daniel Tapp, stated that the move was not unexpected. Spaniel had informed him of his decision after his defeat at the party conference "out of frustration". The selection of the list was a democratic process that was not challenged by anyone present. "The baseless allegations against his former party are now supposed to justify why he is still holding onto the mandate that he could only acquire through the AfD," Tapp added.
With Spaniel's departure, the AfD parliamentary group shrinks to 76 members. Several members have left the faction since the beginning of the legislative period. Initially, the faction had 82 members.
The departure of Dirk Spaniel from the AfD parliamentary group has been met with accusations from him, alleging that the party spread falsehoods about him and used resources to create a hostile environment. Spaniel, a former AfD member and critic of co-party leader Alice Weidel, was not re-nominated to the state list for the next Bundestag election.
Since the beginning of the legislative period, the AfD parliamentary group has seen several members leave the faction, resulting in a current count of 76 members with Spaniel's departure.
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