Tabu-break - The SPD chairman is alarmed by the AFD's election aid
Shocked was Saarland SPD Chairwoman and Minister-President Anke Rehlinger about the elections in Saarbrucken West with AfD participation. There, AfD representative Werner Schwaben was elected as deputy mayor in the district council. In addition, Hans-Jürgen Altes (CDU) replaced the previous district mayor Isolde Ries (SPD). This led to speculations about possible AfD votes for him.
Rehlinger spoke of a "taboo break": "I am angry and sad at the same time that this has happened." She had to sadly note, "this is not the responsibility-sharing I would imagine for this country."
The claims afterwards that SPD members had elected an AfD candidate were "embarrassing and absurd" to her. "Creating a stab-in-the-back legend, so that's really knocking the bottom out of the barrel," she said. "The ominous silence of the CDU state chairman is not improved by the indiscretions of the general secretary."
Unanimous party resolution with the AfD
In the Saar SPD, there is a clear party congress resolution on the incompatibility with the AfD and that majorities, which only come about due to AfD votes, especially in personnel matters, are considered "not acceptable." The AfD has five seats in the district council. The SPD has eight, the CDU six, Greens and the Left each have one mandate.
If SPD and CDU could not agree on candidates in advance, "then one has to keep negotiating," emphasized Rehlinger. One could have also postponed the election. For the future, this means "that one has to keep calling each other together and talking to each other. But it means absolutely not that one can be elected with the votes of the AfD."
If one had paid more attention beforehand, the damage would not have been caused. The prerequisite for being able to talk about solutions with each other is that the elected candidate withdraws. "That's perfectly clear."
Ex-Minister-President Hans reacted
The former Saar Minister-President and former CDU party chairman Tobias Hans is thanked by her. "He obviously has a very clear view of the situation and is not afraid to make that clear."
Hans wrote about the incident on the platform X: "Better to elect an AfD man as deputy mayor and accept possible AfD votes in the election for mayor, than to accept a former Landtag deputy president (Isolde Ries), who was always elected with CDU votes?! That cannot be left unchallenged."
- The Saarland SPD has a clear party resolution, declared at a congress, stating the incompatibility with the AfD, and considering majorities achieved through AfD votes, particularly in personnel matters, as "not acceptable."
- In the Saarbrucken West district council, the AfD secured five seats, while the SPD held eight, the CDU six, and both the Greens and the Left each had one mandate.
- Rehlinger suggested that if SPD and CDU could not agree on candidates in advance, negotiations should continue, or the election could be postponed, to prevent the election of a candidate with AfD votes.
- Tobias Hans, the former Saar Minister-President and CDU party chairman, expressed his views on the situation, stating that it would be better to accept an AfD deputy mayor with potential AfD votes for the mayor, than to accept a former Landtag deputy president (Isolde Ries) who was always elected with CDU votes.
- Despite the election of an AfD representative as deputy mayor in Saarbrucken West, Rehlinger emphasized that being elected with AFD votes is not acceptable, and called for continued communication and negotiations between the parties.
- Hans-Jürgen Altes, who replaced Isolde Ries as district mayor, faced speculation about potential AfD votes for him, leading to concerns about a potential "taboo break" in the country's responsibility-sharing.
