Thuringia election: AfD politician new Vice President - Ramelow now in criticism

Bodo Ramelow was re-elected Prime Minister of Thuringia in the second attempt. But now there are difficult tasks ahead - and a scene on election day reverberates.

• Bodo Ramelow was elected Prime Minister of Thuringia in the second attempt.
• The votes of the Left, Greens and SPD were enough for Ramelow thanks to an almost closed abstention from the CDU.
• A scene after the election was the subject of conversation: Ramelow refused the AfD parliamentary group leader Björn Höcke to shake hands.

Update at 4:58 p.m .: After Thuringia's Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow gave the AfD candidate for Vice President, Michael Kaufmann , his voice in Erfurt on Thursday, well-known politicians criticize the Prime Minister on Twitter. Green politician Katrin Göring-Eckardt tweeted: “Understand who wants. I definitely don't! "

Understand who wants. I definitely don't! What does basically mean? Basically there is no reason to contribute to the normalization of #noafd. On the contrary! https://t.co/VgwHEmGt6l

Thuringia: Ramelow's vote for AfD candidates is criticized on Twitter

And FDP politician Marco Buschmann was very critical of the events of the previous day on Twitter. "If the Höcke-AfD chooses one, that's bad," he wrote in his post. And further: "But isn't it worse to choose one from the Höcke-AfD? I'm asking for a friend? #Ramelow ”. However, the Twitter users react split . While one user emphasizes that in free elections everyone can vote for anyone who stands for election, another speaks of the “eloquent double standard of the left”.

Update at 11:56 a.m .: As has now become known, Thuringia's Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow (left) gave the AfD candidate for Vice President, Michael Kaufmann , his vote in the Erfurt State Parliament on Thursday. On dpa request, Ramelow stated that he was denying the handshake to the Thuringian AfD parliamentary group leader Björn Höcke , but not the AfD's parliamentary rights . On the sidelines of the state parliament session, Ramelow also told the Thuringian General on Friday that he had "made a very fundamental decision". He also wanted to use his voice to clear the way for parliamentary participation, which must be granted to every parliamentary group.

Thuringia: CDU votes for project with left, SPD and Greens

Update of March 6, 2020, 11:46 a.m .: For the first time since the election of Bodo Ramelow (left) as Prime Minister of Thuringia, the CDU and a minority government from the Left, SPD and Greens voted for a project. An investment package for Thuringia's municipalities with a volume of 568 million euros was approved by a large majority in the Erfurt state parliament. This decision was also a test of whether the stability agreement of the four parties, which provides for project-related cooperation, works in practice. The FDP also voted for the investment package. The AfD abstained on the partial aspect of the payments planned from 2021.

Thuringia: Ramelows coalition and CDU agree on stability pact

Update from 10:35 pm: After a long struggle, Bodo Ramelow s red-red-green coalition and the CDU in Thuringia have agreed on a "Stability Pact" - parts of the agreements on how to proceed in the Erfurt state parliament have now leaked to the public.

In a now signed protocol from the Left, SPD and Greens with the CDU , which was available to the dpa on Thursday, it says among other things: "The stability mechanism binds both sides until the adoption of the 2021 budget in December 2020". According to the minutes, Ramelow must not, according to the minutes, raise any question of trust in the state parliament without the consent of the four parties that could mean the dissolution of the parliament.

Thuringia and the ominous pact - tolerance or "constructive opposition"?

According to the protocol, it was agreed that the four parties would independently submit parliamentary motions, but would "only seek the necessary compromises among themselves". It continues: "The parliamentary groups mentioned agree to re-elect the state parliament on April 25, 2021."

View of the Thuringian state parliament.

© dpa / Martin Schutt

The agreement is seen by a number of members of the state parliament as a kind of tolerance or tolerance of Ramelow's minority government . The CDU parliamentary group, which is bound by a decision of the Federal Party - no cooperation with the AfD and the Left - described its role as " constructive opposition ".

Thuringia: Ramelow disappointed SPD and Greens - "Something broke there already"

Ramelow not only has to come to terms with the CDU, which is bound by clear guidelines from Berlin - but also with his own partners. The SPD and Greens chalked up the 64-year-old once again in the past four weeks. Neither the proposal to form a technical government with ex-Prime Minister Christine Lieberknecht (CDU), nor Ramelow's decision to go into the third ballot in the Prime Minister election and to recommend abstaining from the CDU had been discussed in advance, the SPD said Greens in the state parliament. "Something broke already," said a social democrat.

Thuringia: AfD state vice-president allegedly elected by CDU and FDP - is the next trouble looming?

Update from 6.20 p.m .: The AfD politician Michael Kaufmann has been elected vice president of the Thuringian state parliament. Out of 89 valid votes cast, he received 45 votes in favor, as the Landtag announced on Twitter on Thursday. 35 deputies voted no, nine abstained. Kaufmann had already run for office in January, but failed at the time.

The AfD has 22 members in the Thuringian state parliament. The necessary majority for Kaufmann came on Thursday, according to his parliamentary group, by votes "from MPs from CDU and FDP" . The election of Kaufmann, possibly with the votes of the two parties, could cause political turmoil.

Before Kaufmann's first candidacy for the office of vice president, the AfD had sent Tosca Kniese into the race; it had failed twice. The parliamentary executive of the parliamentary group, Torben Braga, said on Thursday that it was "unfortunate that it took so long and took so many votes" before Kaufmann was elected. The candidates from the CDU, SPD, Greens and FDP had already been elected state vice presidents in November.

The ARD “Germany Trend” meanwhile also provides insights into the opinion of citizens about possible cooperation between the CDU and AfD or the Left.

Thuringia: After the handshake scene - Ramelow discussed this with Höcke

Update from 16:38: First Bodo Ramelow refused the handshake to the highly controversial AfD faction leader Björn Höcke - followed by a few seconds long dialogue between the two politicians, observed by the television cameras in the state parliament. In a TV interview Ramelow has now revealed what he had to discuss with Höcke.

"Anyone who nominates a candidate in a parliament but does not elect him - zero votes for Mr. Kindervater in the third ballot - in order to set a trap for an FDP politician, as the AfD called it, does not want to defend democracy," he had held up Höcke with a view to the first round of elections about a month ago, reported Thuringia's new and old head of government in the ARD morning magazine. "And I asked him to clearly state whether he wants to defend parliamentary democracy or whether he wants to destroy it."

Scandal before the Thuringia election: Seehofer and Riexinger reproach each other

Update from 1:14 p.m .: Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) has now also commented on the scandal at a press conference of the Left Party shortly before the Thuringian Prime Minister election - with sharp criticism . Such a statement is " the seed on which violence occurs consciously or intentionally or unintentionally , " said Seehofer on Thursday in the Bundestag. "That is why you have to use this day again to remind yourself of moderation in the language," continued the CSU politician.

The background: Left party leader Bernd Riexinger had countered the statement of a conference participant about the shooting of rich people at a party conference with the words: “We don't shoot them. We are already using them for useful work . ”

Riexinger himself, however, also targeted Seehofer in an interview published on Thursday with the taz . "You won't find a statement from me, as from Mr. Seehofer, who said that until the very last patrons they would fight immigration into our social systems." Riexinger apologized for the ominous dialogue at the left conference. The participant's words were "unacceptable". "She apologized for that. I didn't respond appropriately. I apologize for that. "

After the Thuringia election: Ramelow hopes for "new form of togetherness"

Update from Thursday, March 5, 2020, 9:12 am: After the left-wing politician Bodo Ramelow was re-elected Prime Minister of Thuringia on Wednesday in an exciting electoral thriller, he has spoken out for a “new form of cooperation” between the parties in Thuringia .

"The four parties CDU, SPD, Bündnis90 / Grüne and the left will no longer be driven by the AfD, " said Ramelow on Thursday in the ARD "Morgenmagazin". This core sentence was agreed by these parties. He further emphasized that one had to learn to go a new way. "I call this the Thuringian Way, " said the re-elected Prime Minister.

Thuringia election: Bodo Ramelow appoints minister for red-red-green government

Update from 17:21: Bodo Ramelow has appointed his ministers for the red-red-green government after the election as prime minister . These are to be sworn in in the parliament in Erfurt on Wednesday .

• Thuringia's SPD leader Wolfgang Tiefensee and the Greens politician Anja Siegesmund are deputies of the prime minister.
• As in the previous legislature, Tiefensee heads the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Siegesmund will be responsible for the Ministry of Environment.
• New to Ramelow's cabinet is Dirk Adams, who was previously the leader of the Greens in the Thuringian state parliament.
• The Ministry of Infrastructure and Agriculture is to be managed by Benjamin Immanuel Hoff (left).
• Hoff is also head of the State Chancellery and Minister of Culture.
• Former Agriculture Minister Birgit Keller is now Thuringia's President of the Landtag.
• The remaining ministries were staffed by Ramelow with the same staff as in the previous legislature.

Handshake scandal after Thuringia election: Höcke rages on TV - Ramelow defends action

Update from 5:09 p.m .: That Bodo Ramelow did not want to shake hands after the election of the AfD parliamentary group leader Björn Höcke causes displeasure at Höcke. He was hit hard and railed in front of ntv cameras: “We already know from four weeks ago that he doesn't have manners when he didn't want to shake hands with Mr. Kemmerich. (...) The mannerlessness of the new prime minister is a shame for Thuringia. "

Prime Minister election in Thuringia

© dpa / Michael Reichel

It was "a need" for him to shake Ramelow's hand. Not because he is pleased that Ramelow will return to the post of Prime Minister as a “candidate for the SED”, but because he wants to show him that he accepts this formally correct, democratic election.

But the rejected handshake is not the only excitement of the Left Party around the prime ministerial election. In a commentary, the editor-in-chief of Munich's Merkur *, Georg Anastasiadis, argues why the last mask was dropped on the left.

Thuringia election: Björn Höcke blames Bodo Ramelow

Höcke accused Ramelow of speaking with a “split tongue”. "On the one hand preach tolerance and openness, on the other hand to exclude large parts of not only the parliament, but now also the Thuringian electorate - that is not possible," said Höcke to reporters in the state parliament in Erfurt.

Bodo Ramelow, on the other hand, said about the refusal in parliament: “That can be seen as rude manners. (...) But: Only when you are ready to defend democracy, I am ready to shake your hand. "As long as Höcke" builds traps ", he will not do so.

Four weeks ago, when FDP man Kemmerich was elected with AfD votes, Ramelow had refused to shake his hand. With the electoral scandal in Thuringia, a series of domestic problems in Germany began that has still not come to an end. But the situation is also extremely tense in terms of foreign policy. Munich's Merkur * comments on how Germany should behave in the Syrian crisis.

Thuringia election: Kipping congratulates Ramelow as the new Prime Minister

Update from 16:52: The party and faction leaders of the left congratulated Bodo Ramelow on his election as Prime Minister of Thuringia . “Thuringia is not Germany , but Germany can learn today in Thuringia that the right will not win if there is a real alternative based on solidarity. Now it's about good politics for the country and for the people, ”party leader Katja Kipping wrote after the election on Thursday on Twitter.

Congratulations to @bodoramelow! # Thuringia is not Germany, but Germany can learn in Thuringia today that the right will not win if there is a genuine alternative based on solidarity. Now it's all about good politics for the country and for the people!

Update 4.30 p.m .: Höcke rages over Ramelow , calls the coalition of left, SPD and Greens "new SED" and calls the behavior a "shame for Thuringia". He predicted both Ramelow and the CDU a difficult gear next year until the new election .

Update 4.20 p.m .: Ramelow is given the floor. He even explains why he refused to handshake Höcke . He justifies the fact that the AfD must first clarify whether it would rather build traps or protect democracy and criticizes the behavior of the party in the first election four weeks ago.

Ramelow also finds it oppressing what the Kemmerich family had to endure. The family of the FDP chairman as well as recently was under police protection. "They are the arsonists in this room," he scolds the AfD. Ramelow thanks the CDU parliamentary group that they have paved the way for him by abstaining. This contributes to stability.

Ramelow now sees the crisis as an opportunity for Thuringia and commits the parliamentary groups to working together.

The meeting was suspended until 6 p.m., when Ramelow was to appoint the ministers.

New election thriller in Thuringia: Ramelow Prime Minister again - then he denies Höcke the handshake

Update 16.17: Thuringia has a new prime minister: Bodo Ramelow (left)! The result is: 85 votes cast, Ramelow gets 42 votes in favor and 23 votes against, with 20 abstentions. The result should calm Ramelow. Ramelow takes the oath and is congratulated. Thomas Kemmerich congratulates. Ramelow does not accept the handshake offered by Höcke.

#bodo remains

Update 4:11 p.m .: All votes have been cast.

Update 3:55 p.m .: The third ballot is pending . Ramelow starts again, Höcke does not. That can be seen as at least a small surprise. Now Ramelow only has to be confirmed, then he is Prime Minister again. The 42 votes of red-red-green would now suffice for an election as prime minister. But what if the CDU, AfD and FDP made use of their no votes? Then Ramelow would have more no votes than yes votes. But: The Thuringian constitution stipulates that whoever has the most votes is elected. There is also a constitutional dispute. Everything extremely complex.

Election result in Thuringia: Ramelow fails again - Höcke forces third ballot, AfD requests a break

Update 3:24 pm: The result is available. 85 valid ballot papers, abstentions 21. Ramelow only gets 42 votes. Björn Höcke , head of the AfD parliamentary group , also received 22 yes votes - as many as his parliamentary group has. Another half hour is interrupted - at the request of the AfD. What is the party considering? During the last election as prime minister, she famously forged the plan for Thomas Kemmerich of the FDP to vote, making him the temporary prime minister .

Update 3:19 p.m .: All papers are in the ballot box. Now it is counted. We'll know more in just over ten minutes.

Update 3:09 pm: The blinds are lowered, the deputies should not be disturbed by demonstrators before the state parliament. There is an enormous tension in the air. Will the third round come again? Bodo Ramelow looks relaxed ...

Update 3:00 p.m .: The second ballot is imminent. Ramelow and Höcke are up for election again. There are no other applicants. The explanation of the voting slip follows again.

Prime Minister election in Thuringia: Bodo Ramelow.

© AFP / JENS SCHLUETER

Election result in Thuringia: Ramelow fails again in the first round on Höcke

Update 2:33 p.m .: The result is already available. 85 valid ballot papers, abstentions 21. Ramelow only gets 42 votes. Björn Höcke, head of the AfD parliamentary group, also received 22 yes votes - as many as his parliamentary group has. 21 MPs abstained. A second round is needed. The four FDP deputies present in the plenary hall did not vote and remained seated. The Liberals had previously announced that they would boycott the election. An FDP MP was excused.

The second round takes place in 30 minutes. After the entire CDU has abstained (as announced), the second ballot will probably not bring a decision either.

Update 2:29 p.m .: The first ballot has ended. In about ten minutes it is clear whether Ramelow has already made it in the first round with 46+ votes.

Thuringia election 2020: Ramelow against Höcke - election run to the prime minister is running

Update 2:24 pm: The voting for the first ballot is now underway . Mohring and Ramelow have already been read out and are now voting.

Update 2:02 p.m .: The first ballot for the prime ministerial election begins immediately. The Landtag begins with a minute's silence for the victims of the extreme right-wing attack in Hanau (Hesse) two weeks ago.

The president of the state parliament says goodbye to Mike Mohring * as CDU chairman and congratulates Mario Voigt on his successor.

Update 1:47 pm: Björn Höcke only wants to decide at short notice whether he will run in all three rounds of the 2020 Thuringia election in the state parliament. "We decide how we proceed after each ballot," said Thuringia's AfD chairman of Augsburger Allgemeine . "We will then withdraw to consultations." This means that there is a possibility that the 22 AfD deputies will vote for the left candidate Bodo Ramelow * for tactical reasons.

Ramelow, on the other hand, does not want to become head of government if the AfD votes are decisive . The former prime minister of the state would need an absolute majority, i.e. 46 votes, in the first or second ballot. This would require votes from the CDU or FDP factions.

Is Thuringia threatening another crime thriller and another scandal? We will experience it in the next few minutes.

Next thriller in the Thuringian election: Ramelow against Höcke - CDU makes far-reaching decision

Update from 12.36 p.m .: The CDU parliamentary group in the Thuringian state parliament wants to abstain completely from today's election of the prime minister, this was decided unanimously immediately before the start. In a secret trial vote, all 20 CDU MPs present therefore voted for this step. "We will adhere to the agreed parliamentary procedural rules so that political stability can be maintained and central tasks can be carried out in a state parliament without a majority," said CDU parliamentary group leader Mario Voigt. The CDU faction sees itself "as a constructive opposition ".

The CDU would live up to its state political responsibility and would "not build up any unnecessary barriers". "This will allow Thuringia to come back into calmer waters without us violating our basic political beliefs," said Voigt, referring to the decision of the federal CDU, which prohibits cooperation with the left and the AfD.

Ramelow waived his previously cemented claim to be elected with votes from the CDU and / or FDP in the first ballot. Ramelow this morning: "I will go in three ballots."

Thuringia election: Klöckner weathered against left and right

Update from 9.55 a.m .: The deputy CDU chairman makes an appeal to her party friends in Erfurt before today's Prime Minister election in Thuringia. Julia Klöckner demands that neither the AfD nor the left vote. Klöckner told Rheinische Post about the candidacy of AfD country chief Björn Höcke that, for good reason, CDU deputies could not vote for an AfD representative. "Christian Democrats don't work with politicians who are racist and nationalist."

But that does not automatically mean that the CDU can support Bodo Ramelow from the left in the election as prime minister. Ramelow stood with his party "for a GDR transfiguration, for the exit from NATO or for another social system". "This is not compatible with our broad social program," added CDU politician Klöckner.

Thuringia election: Does Ramelow get votes from the CDU camp?

Update from 9.11 a.m .: Thuringia's former head of government Bodo Ramelow (left) apparently does not want to be elected prime minister in the first ballot with votes from the CDU parliamentary group . "I exchanged views with the CDU parliamentary group leader Mario Voigt and told him that if necessary I would run in all three ballots," said Ramelow apparently. The Spiegel and the Thuringian Allgemeine report. Accordingly, Ramelow would ask the CDU for "consistent abstention".

Initially, Ramelow had planned to be elected in the first ballot. For this, as in the second round, he would need an absolute majority - 46 votes. This would require votes from the CDU or FDP factions . According to the Thuringian constitution, in the third ballot it is enough to get the most votes .

Bodo Ramelow from the left: Government crisis in Thuringia.

© picture alliance / dpa / Martin Schutt

The former state premier, Christine Lieberknecht (CDU) , assumes that Ramelow will also receive votes from the CDU parliamentary group. The members of the state parliament are solely responsible for their conscience in the voting booth, Lieberknecht announced on the RBB's Inforadio. She considers such a choice to be "the smartest scenario". The Federal Party is pressing not to support a left-wing prime minister. "But our problem is that the Left Party is no longer seen as such an extreme," said Lieberknecht.

Prime Minister election Thuringia: Did Ramelow get help from the AfD?

Update of March 4th, 0.35 a.m .: Shortly before the renewed election of the prime minister in Thuringia , the picture adds another report that is unpleasant for Bodo Ramelow: The country father in office from 2014 to February 2020 had come into office only on the basis of a vote by the AfD , writes the sheet, citing information from a former AfD member of the state parliament.

"Well-known SPD comrades approached me in 2014 with the question of whether I could give Mr Ramelow my vote," said politician Oskar Helmerich, who had switched to the SPD parliamentary group in 2016. He had complied with the request. Ramelow was not convinced in his reaction: "I can not imagine that," he said, according to the report. Helmerich is controversial within the SPD, but helped to secure the narrow majority of the red-red-green state government.

Who actually chose Ramelow in 2014 cannot be checked: the Thuringian Prime Minister is elected by secret ballot. It is clear that the left was elected with a minimum majority of 46 of the 90 deputies. The election of the FDP politician Thomas Kemmerich with the votes of the entire AfD parliamentary group had led to a nationwide political quake at the beginning of February.

There is also criticism of the FDP before election day. The Liberals want to leave the plenary hall during the poll. "The FDP is not facing the new Nazis," complained the SPD politician Karl Lauterbach late Tuesday evening on Twitter. "Who needs such a cowardly troop," he asked provocatively.

The FDP does not face the new Nazis. First she does things together, now she leaves the room at the election. Who needs such a cowardly troop? The AfD will mock and laugh at you for this cowardice. A new election would sweep away the FDP, it will also be tight in the federal government https://t.co/C2N6bPfuo3

"Shoot the rich": At the left-wing conference there is a derailment - Ramelow distances himself from party friends

Update 10:20 pm: At the very bad time for Bodo Ramelow , who wants to be elected Prime Minister of Thuringia again on Wednesday, there is a story that the Bild newspaper published on Tuesday evening: At the weekend there was a conference of the party " Die Linke ”in Kassel for a participant to speak. This said, probably with an ironically meant undertone, that the energy transition must also be shaped "after a revolution if we shot one percent of the rich" .

In doing so, she apparently wanted to draw attention to the fact that the energy transition is important regardless of the question of distribution in society. Some clapped in the hall after this sentence, most remained silent. Left-wing party leader Bernd Riexinger , who was sitting on the podium, did not respond at first - and then said according to the picture : "We will not shoot them, we use them for useful work." Critics in turn interpret this sentence as an indication of the labor camps there was, for example, in the Soviet Union. Millions of prisoners died there.

CSU general secretary Markus Blume is outraged. He demands Riexinger's resignation. Compared to the picture, he said: “After this video, Bernd Riexinger has to explain himself and take the consequences. The resignation from the party presidency is inevitable. ” CDU General Secretary Paul Ziemiak speaks of a“ hideous attitude ”. He sees it confirmed that the Christian Democrats cannot work with the left.

Ramelow now clearly distances himself from the derailment at the Left Conference - and criticizes the party chairman: “Anyone who wants to shoot people and who has raved about a revolution with or through violence has nothing in common with my canon of values. Such a statement at a conference of my party is unacceptable and should never have been passed over with a smile! ”

Here you can see a section of the request to speak:

Check out this post on Instagram

I find it very comforting that the party leader of the left converts the shooting of the rich into charitable work. This is how you can see the human compass of the Left Party at its strategy congress in Kassel

A post shared by Ralf Schuler (@ ralf.schuler) on Mar 3, 2020 at 2:27 pm PST

Corona virus suspicion: Prime Minister election in Thuringia was on the brink

Update 8.10 p.m .: As the picture reports, the suspected coronavirus has not been confirmed by a member of parliament in Thuringia. The prime ministerial election can thus take place on Wednesday.

Update at 16:29: A suspicion of coronavirus in the state parliament jeopardizes the prime minister election in Thuringia, which is planned for this Wednesday. A 56-year-old CDU member of parliament is in quarantine. A test result was expected for Tuesday evening. If the suspicion is confirmed, the election of a new head of government scheduled for Wednesday will be postponed, according to state parliament president Birgit Keller (left). Then it cannot be ruled out that the CDU man has already infected other politicians.

The parliamentarian is one of the four CDU deputies who between February 17 and 21, in several rounds of negotiations in the state parliament, concluded a stability agreement with the left, the SPD and the Greens, as confirmed in the state parliament in Erfurt.

Thuringia election: Corona suspicion in the CDU - Is tomorrow's election now on the brink?

Update at 3:28 p.m .: According to President Birgit Keller , the Prime Minister election in the Thuringian state parliament, which is planned for this Wednesday, will be postponed if the suspicion of a corona infection is confirmed by a CDU MP. The scheduled state parliament session would be canceled in this case because a positive test result could not rule out that the parliamentarian had also infected other MPs, said Keller of the German Press Agency in Erfurt.

Holding a state parliament session in these circumstances runs the risk of putting other people at risk. "We have to react. We take the situation seriously. ”According to the Ministry of Health, the test result on the suspected case is expected on Tuesday evening. "When it is there, we will decide without panic, " said Keller.

Update at 2.45 p.m .: Tomorrow's prime minister election in Thuringia, the candidacy of left-wing politician Bodo Ramelow and AfD right wing Björn Höcke clearly conflict with each other. In general, the AfD's move is surprising and puts enormous pressure on the Liberals and Christian Democrats. But of course there is also a political calculation on the part of the AfD behind the campaign.

Thuringia election: Corona suspicion in the CDU - Is tomorrow's election on the brink?

Update at 1.40 p.m .: Now the corona virus may also have reached the Thuringian CDU . There was a suspected Corona case in the ranks of the CDU parliamentary group there immediately before the Prime Minister election . The suspicion of an infection with the novel virus is currently being clarified, said a parliamentary group spokesman on Tuesday in Erfurt. According to a state parliament spokesman, a laboratory result is expected in the late afternoon .

If the suspected case is confirmed, the Thuringian Prime Minister election could be on the brink . Particularly tricky: The CDU MP, now considered a suspected case, was still at the parliamentary meeting in Erfurt on Monday, at which the 21 MPs elected a new parliamentary board. The CDU politician in question is now in quarantine, according to information from the Thuringian General . He was on a skiing holiday in Italy during the winter holidays with an infected 57-year-old man from the Saale-Orla district, said a spokesman for the State Health Ministry in Erfurt. But the politician shows no symptoms.

Thuringia election: FDP state group wants to leave the plenary hall

Update at 13.09: The Thuringian FDP faction has a clever plan for tomorrow's Prime Minister election: To express their rejection of both the left-wing politician Bodo Ramelow and the Thuringian AfD leader Björn Höcke , the free liberals want the plenary hall left on Wednesday at the election , reports the dpa and relies on image information.

"If you want to document that you reject both candidates, you cannot take part in the ballot," said Thomas Philipp Reiter, spokesman for the Thuringian FDP parliamentary group. Reiter argued that the ballot papers would not include no votes . "Abstention is not a no," he emphasized. According to him, there is also a parliamentary decision on the planned move by the Thuringian FDP.

Update of March 3, 2020, 10:38 a.m .: Thuringia's new CDU parliamentary group leader Mario Voigt has rejected demands by the Young Union (JU) that his party's representatives should leave the plenary hall in the election of the prime minister . "MPs are not elected to shirk responsibility," said Voigt on Tuesday in the MDR. He went on to say that this applies "for the election act and for any other factual decision afterwards". Therefore, leaving the room is absolutely not an option .

Thuringia election: JU boss requests the state CDU to leave the plenary hall

The JU chairman Tilman Kuban had previously asked the MPs to leave the plenary hall in the election of the prime minister in Thuringia.

First message from March 2, 2020:

Erfurt - Björn Höcke , head of the AfD in Thuringia, wants to run for the Prime Minister election on Wednesday *. The party’s election proposal had been submitted to the state administration on Monday, the AfD parliamentary group in Erfurt said. Höcke, one of the leading figures in the right-wing AfD "wing" , is competing against left-wing politician Bodo Ramelow.

After the uproar over the election of the FDP politician Thomas Kemmerich * , who was elected about a month ago with votes from the CDU, liberals and AfD and resigned only a day later after a wave of outrage, the previous prime minister Ramelow wants to * Re-elect on Wednesday in the state parliament.

Thuringia election: CDU and FDP have rejected offers from the AfD, says an AfD managing director

All offers of the AfD "for a cooperation of the existing bourgeois majority" in the Thuringian state parliament and a termination of red-red-green have been rejected by the CDU and FDP , said the parliamentary director of the AfD faction Torben Braga. " If Bodo Ramelow receives more than the 42 votes of the red-red-green camp next Wednesday and is elected Prime Minister *, it should be clear to every viewer that these votes did not come from the AfD ." The CDU and FDP would have broken their promise not to elect Ramelow and not to allow red-red-green to continue, Braga said.

Ramelow's red-red-green alliance , with which he had ruled for the past five years, lacks four votes for a majority in the new state parliament . For this reason, he is dependent on votes from the CDU or FDP in the prime ministerial election, at least in the first two ballots. Ramelow does not want to be elected to office with AfD votes. A similar scenario * took place a few weeks earlier in the state election. What followed was a political quake across the nation.

Thuringia election: The CDU apparently wants to "not actively" choose Ramelow as head of government

Officially , the state CDU remains on the line so far that it will "not actively" elect the left-wing politician as head of government. The background is a party convention of the federal CDU from 2018 that prohibits cooperation with the Left Party and AfD. It is speculated, however, whether several CDU MPs could vote for Ramelow in the first ballot in the first ballot. In the third ballot, the simple majority would suffice.

Red-Red-Green already reached a so-called stability agreement with the CDU , which provides for limited, project-related cooperation until a new election in April 2021. In this way, Thuringia should also emerge from the crisis that has prevailed in the country since the uproar in the last prime ministerial election. However, it does not contain any stipulations on the choice of Ramelow or any other contractual arrangement for tolerance.

AFP, dpa

* Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editors network.

List of rubric lists: © dpa / Martin Schutt