The Alternative for Germany party (AfD) fails to gain significant progress in Thuringia.

The Alternative for Germany party (AfD) fails to gain significant progress in Thuringia.

The CDU celebrates a "good day" while the Left remains cautiously optimistic: In the Thuringian district council and mayor elections, the AfD didn't achieve top spots in the first round. Nevertheless, there will be runoffs in many places.

The AfD's progress in the Thuringian district council and mayor elections was thwarted. In the Altenburger Land district, the AfD candidate secured the most votes, but he needs to participate in a runoff. In several other districts, AfD candidates also came in as runners-up and will compete in runoffs.

Approximately 1.7 million people were invited to vote in the local elections. Over 7,500 seats in the Thuringian municipal parliaments were open for election. In addition to district councils, mayors, and mayors, city and town councils were also elected. The municipal elections also serve as a test for the Thuringian state election due on September 1st. The performance of the AfD is closely monitored since the party has a deep presence in some regions and has held the first and only district president position in Germany to date. The Thuringian state association is classified as a proven right-wing extremist by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.

Despite winning the most votes in the Altenburger Land district in the district council election, AfD candidate Heiko Philipp failed to secure the absolute majority of 50%. As a result, there will be a runoff between Philipp and the second-placed CDU candidate Uwe Melzer in two weeks. Melzer secured 32.2% of the votes.

AfD candidates took second place in eight other districts, leading to runoffs in these areas as well. In the Hildburghausen district, right-wing extremist and former NPD functionary Tommy Frenck made it to the runoff with the candidate of the Free Voters, Sven Gregor. Frenck, who owns an estate property in Kloster Veßra, has been mentioned several times in the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution's report. Frenck's candidacy was controversial and had irked some before the election. The Thuringian Election Law states that "an individual who does not guarantee that they will always act in favor of the free democratic basic order in accordance with the Basic Law and the state constitution cannot be elected to the position of district president or mayor." CDU representatives on the election committee allowed Frenck to run.

In the Schmalkalden-Meiningen district, incumbent SPD district president Peggy Greiser won the election in the first round, while in the cities of Weimar and Suhl, incumbents Peter Kleine (independent) and André Knapp (CDU) won the mayoral elections. No AfD candidates were present in either city. In the three other state-free cities of Erfurt, Gera, and Jena, the elections will proceed to runoffs. In the former SPD stronghold of Erfurt, CDU candidate Andreas Horn is ahead of Andreas Bausewein, who has been mayor since 2006.

Thirteen of the seventeen Thuringian districts require new district administrators. The AfD won the first district administrator position for the party nationwide in the Thuringian district of Sonneberg last year. In the district council elections, the right-wing extremists are now leading with 35.5 percent.

Votes from all Thuringians aged 16 and above were counted. Final results should be revealed by Monday. If there is no majority, necessary runoff elections will take place concurrently with the European elections on June 9th.

"Brown takeover" blocked

The Thuringian CDU praised the interim results of the local elections. CDU chairman and CDU candidate for the September 1st state election, Mario Voigt, spoke of a "good day with good decisions for Thuringia". He believed the CDU would become "the strongest force in the state."

The Left, which is again running with Minister President Bodo Ramelow for the state election, saw the AfD's missed successes and responded, "Thuringia has not turned blue just yet." The voters had "prevented the brown takeover in the first round of district council and mayor elections."

SPD state chairman Georg Maier viewed the results as a strengthening of his party's position in local politics. "Social democratic municipal politics has gained momentum today," said Maier, the SPD candidate for the state election. In the overall outcome, the SPD had become "the third strongest force in Thuringia with over 16 percent."

During the last polls for the state ballot, the CDU had recently held steady at 20% and was in second place behind the AfD with approximately 30%. The Left and the BSW were close behind with each hovering around 16%, the SPD at around 8%, and the Greens at 5%. The FDP was no longer expected to be represented in the state legislature. The current coalition government in Erfurt consists of the Left, SPD, and Greens.

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The SPD and The Left commend the Thuringians for preventing a "brown takeover" in the elections, referring to the CDU and potentially the AfD. Despite the AfD securing the most votes in the Altenburger Land district, they failed to achieve an absolute majority, leading to a runoff between the AfD and CDU candidates. The Left in Thuringia, who are running with Bodo Ramelow for the state election, remain hopeful that right-wing extremism, represented by the AfD, will not gain significant influence in the region.

Source: www.ntv.de