As of: February 5, 2024, 1:27 p.m
By: Lisa Mahnke
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The BSW has government ambitions; this would be possible in East Germany as early as this year.
Who could Sahra Wagenknecht's party form a coalition with?
Berlin – The Sahra Wagenknecht alliance made itself available at its party conference as a potential governing party in the coming state elections.
Wagenknecht and her supporters within the left had rarely shown themselves willing to compromise.
However, the hardliners, who, among other things, are against NATO, EU integration, Bundeswehr missions abroad and Russia sanctions, showed themselves to be surprisingly disciplined at their first party conference: There was largely consensus, there were no heckling and even in breaks between speeches the silence could be heard become.
The fact that the BSW presents itself so directly as a possible governing party could already have an impact on the three eastern elections in the fall.
In Thuringia, the BSW recently achieved 17 percent in an INSA survey, although the party previously only received five to seven percent in surveys by other institutes.
In Saxony, the Wagenknecht party achieved eight percent for Infratest/dimap, 13 percent for INSA results in Brandenburg and four percent for Forsa.
The sometimes wide range in the survey results leaves all possibilities open - including government participation.
Wagenknecht party may be crucial for forming a government without AfD
All three federal states face a massive challenge with the upcoming elections this year.
Although different parties govern each of the three federal states, they face similar problems.
The strength of the AfD, with a poll high of 35 percent in Saxony, makes forming a coalition more difficult.
The values in the other two federal states are hardly lower.
The BSW could be the last straw for the firewall in the three eastern elections.
The Wagenknecht party has so far only rejected a coalition with the AfD, but also with the Greens.
Sahra Wagenknecht was officially elected chairwoman at the founding party conference.
© Photo creditpicture alliance/dpa |
Kay Nietfeld
With such high figures for the AfD, the question arises as to whether a majority government is even possible.
There is already a red-red-green minority government in Thuringia.
The government under Bodo Ramelow (The Left) always cooperates with the opposition CDU for majorities, but the CDU has also worked for majorities with the FDP and the AfD, which were able to overrule the government.
BSW is keeping all options open: advantages in opposition and in alliance with the government
For the BSW, both options are possible: While they spoke out in favor of participating in the government, according to
Spiegel
, the BSW also expressed itself not averse to the CDU tactics.
In an opposition with the AfD and the CDU, the new party would be significantly more influential than in a minority government.
A long-term cooperation agreement between the BSW and the respective government in the federal states would also be possible.
The BSW could then, for example, influence the budget.
A minority government means more work for the respective governing parties.
Bodo Ramelow was also cautious in telling the
German Press Agency
: “I am not aiming for a minority government.
My needs are actually covered.” If the government alone lacks a majority, this could increase the willingness to debate and compromise in parliament.
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CDU coalition with BSW questionable – better chances of finding allies than the Left
Ultimately, however, forming a government with the BSW also depends on the approval of the alliance partners.
They have so far been reluctant to form a coalition, even if nothing has been ruled out.
In the eastern German states, the decision of the CDU, which has so far ruled out any cooperation with the AfD and the Left, remains particularly exciting.
The same argument as the Left - according to
Spiegel
, that of the SED history - could also prevent a possible coalition between BSW and CDU.
However, if you look at the political orientation of the Wagenknecht party, the BSW could have better chances of forming an alliance than the Left.
In a survey by Die
Zeit
, the BSW was classified by members as economically more left-wing and socially more conservative.
Conservative parties often criticized the more progressive identity politics on the left - this problem should not exist with the new alliance party.
In terms of economic policy, Wagenknecht's party also appeared to be significantly more bourgeois in its short-distance election program than the Left Party.
(lismah)