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German politician elected with help from far right to step down
Source: The Guardian
German politician elected with help from far right to step down
Thomas Kemmerich decision comes amid outrage over AfD votes that helped secure win
Philip Oltermann in Berlin
@philipoltermann
Thu 6 Feb 2020 17.33 GMT
First published on Thu 6 Feb 2020 12.05 GMT
A German state premier elected with help from the far-right Alternative für Deutschland has announced he will step down, succumbing to widespread outrage across the country and condemnation from Angela Merkel.
A postwar consensus among established parties of shunning the far right was broken on Wednesday when Thomas Kemmerich won the election in the eastern state of Thuringia on the back of votes from the chancellor’s Christian Democratic Union and the aggressively nationalistic AfD.
The little-known Free Democrat (FDP) politician told German media on Thursday morning that he was right to have accepted the mandate, arguing that fresh elections would merely play into the hands of the far right and the far left.
By lunchtime, however, after a meeting with his party leader, Christian Lindner, Kemmerich had changed his mind. “Resignation is unavoidable,” he said. “Democrats need democratic majorities.”
Merkel had waded into the affair earlier in the day, saying it was “unforgivable” that politicians from her centre-right party voted with the AfD to remove Thuringia’s leftwing premier, and that the outcome “has to be reverted”.
-snip-
Thomas Kemmerich decision comes amid outrage over AfD votes that helped secure win
Philip Oltermann in Berlin
@philipoltermann
Thu 6 Feb 2020 17.33 GMT
First published on Thu 6 Feb 2020 12.05 GMT
A German state premier elected with help from the far-right Alternative für Deutschland has announced he will step down, succumbing to widespread outrage across the country and condemnation from Angela Merkel.
A postwar consensus among established parties of shunning the far right was broken on Wednesday when Thomas Kemmerich won the election in the eastern state of Thuringia on the back of votes from the chancellor’s Christian Democratic Union and the aggressively nationalistic AfD.
The little-known Free Democrat (FDP) politician told German media on Thursday morning that he was right to have accepted the mandate, arguing that fresh elections would merely play into the hands of the far right and the far left.
By lunchtime, however, after a meeting with his party leader, Christian Lindner, Kemmerich had changed his mind. “Resignation is unavoidable,” he said. “Democrats need democratic majorities.”
Merkel had waded into the affair earlier in the day, saying it was “unforgivable” that politicians from her centre-right party voted with the AfD to remove Thuringia’s leftwing premier, and that the outcome “has to be reverted”.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/06/angela-merkel-says-voting-with-far-right-to-oust-state-chief-was-unforgivable-germany-afd
______________________________________________________________________
Source: BBC
Germany AfD: Thuringia PM quits amid fury over far right
6 February 2020
A German state premier elected with the help of the far-right AfD says he is resigning to pave the way for fresh elections.
The election of liberal leader Thomas Kemmerich in the eastern state of Thuringia prompted national outrage.
-snip-
The AfD has grown in popularity in recent years but has been condemned for its extreme views on immigration, freedom of speech and the press.
Wednesday's vote was described as a political earthquake as it was the first time the AfD had helped form a government in Germany, breaking a consensus among the main parties never to work with extremist parties.
-snip-
6 February 2020
A German state premier elected with the help of the far-right AfD says he is resigning to pave the way for fresh elections.
The election of liberal leader Thomas Kemmerich in the eastern state of Thuringia prompted national outrage.
-snip-
The AfD has grown in popularity in recent years but has been condemned for its extreme views on immigration, freedom of speech and the press.
Wednesday's vote was described as a political earthquake as it was the first time the AfD had helped form a government in Germany, breaking a consensus among the main parties never to work with extremist parties.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-51399445
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