OAN Staff James Meyers
9:40 AM – Monday, September 2, 2024
A far-right German party won a state election on Sunday for the first time since World War II, and came in a tight second place in another race.
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The Alternative for Germany (AfD) won 32% to 33% of the vote in the east German state of Thuringia, overtaking the center right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) group, which brought in around 24%, according to the latest results.
In nearby Saxony, CDU came out in front, with 31.7% of the vote, while AfD won between 30.6% and 31.4%.
“An openly right-wing extremist party has become the strongest force in a state parliament for the first time since 1949, and that causes many people very deep concern and fear,” said Omid Nouripour, a leader of the Greens, one of the national governing parties.
AfD is known for its support of Russia and stricter immigration reform.
Its leaders are also known for focusing on the poor economy in Germany, speaking out against those in support of climate change and blaming the recent terror-linked stabbing in the country on poor migration policies.
AfD’s national leader, Alice Weidel, put the direct blame on CDU leaders in Saxony for that fatal stabbing, claiming it was their policy of “uncontrolled mass immigration” which left three people dead and multiple injured at a music festival in Solingen.
“This is a historic success for us,” Weidel said of Sunday’s victory.
However, CDU’s national general secretary Carsten Linnemann, said that despite AfD’s win, his party would refuse to work with them.
“Voters in both states knew that we wouldn’t form a coalition with AfD, and it will stay that way, we are very, very clear on this,” Linnemann said.
Weidel responded to Linnemann’s comments saying the stance is “pure ignorance,” saying “voters want AfD to participate in a government.”
Meanwhile, Maximilian Krah, a member of the European Parliament, was forced to stop campaigning for the AfD in May after he told an Italian newspaper that the Nazi SS were ”not all criminals.”
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