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🇩🇪 Germany /Elections & Politics

Thuringia’s former BSW members launch new party in lightning-fast restart

From Die Zeit · () German

Translated from German and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Newswire Named sources Ongoing story
  • Former BSW members in Thuringia founded the new Thüringen.Gerecht party two days after leaving the BSW, with former state leader Katja Wolf elected chairwoman.
  • The breakaway lawmakers still want to support CDU state premier Mario Voigt’s government, but the status of the BSW parliamentary group is uncertain because only two of its 12 members remain in the party.
  • The new party could provide the legal basis for a replacement parliamentary group, with the existing BSW group due to discuss next steps in the state parliament.

Two days after leaving the BSW in Thuringia, former members moved at unusual speed to create a new party. They founded Thüringen.Gerecht in Erfurt on Sunday and elected Katja Wolf, the former BSW state leader, finance minister and deputy premier, as its chairwoman.

We want to be on the safe side.

· An unnamed founder of Thüringen.GerechtThe founder explained why former BSW members created the new party so quickly.

The founding reportedly surprised even members of the previous leadership. One founder said the group wanted to establish legal clarity quickly. “We want to be on the safe side,” he said.

The former BSW lawmakers intend to continue supporting the government led by CDU premier Mario Voigt. Thuringia has been governed since late 2024 by Germany’s only coalition of the CDU, BSW and SPD. The BSW’s collapse has pushed that arrangement into crisis because the legal status of its parliamentary group, and therefore one of the three coalition partners, is unclear. Only two of the group’s 12 members still belong to the BSW.

We want to ensure that the government remains able to function.

· Steffen SchützThe Thuringian infrastructure minister described the need to preserve the governing arrangement after the BSW defections.

Infrastructure Minister Steffen Schütz, who temporarily served as the BSW’s co-leader in Thuringia, said the government’s ability to function should not be put at risk. He was elected deputy chair of Thüringen.Gerecht. Wolf said the group had promised stability and reliability in Thuringia and invited people to help fulfill that commitment. Voigt’s state chancellery said the new party created “clarity and orderly conditions.”

We promised to provide stability and reliability in Thuringia. Now we invite everyone to help us put this promise into practice together.

· Katja WolfWolf addressed the new party’s stated commitment after being elected chairwoman.

The party may make it possible to form a new parliamentary group, potentially including at least the 10 former BSW members. Wolf told dpa that a new party was necessary for a new parliamentary group, although she initially referred to deadlines extending into October. New legal assessments reportedly disrupted the original timetable and prompted Sunday’s rushed founding. The existing group, still operating under the BSW name, was due to meet in the state parliament on Monday and explain its next steps. The AfD has called for its parliamentary status and funding to be withdrawn, citing the state constitution.

The founding of Thüringen.Gerecht creates clarity and orderly conditions.

· Mario VoigtThe Thuringian premier reacted to the creation of the new party.
About this summary

Originally published by Die Zeit in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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