ELECTIONS IN SAXONY AND THURINGIA: A VOTE AGAINST WAR
What follows is my English translation of a short article originally in Italian, first published on Movisol.org on 5th September 2024 and then on ComeDonChisciotte.org the day after (6th September 2024).
For weeks before the elections held on 1 September in the two eastern states of Saxony and Thuringia, desperate voices from the establishment and the media tried to convince voters not to vote for the AfD (Alternative for Germany) or the BSW (Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance), that the issue was not war or peace. And it was precisely these two parties that gained the most support, especially the BSW, which was only founded as a party in February this year. The three parties of the national coalition, on the other hand, were defeated. In Thuringia, the Greens and the liberals of the FDP were voted out of the state parliament with 3.2% and 1.1% respectively, while in Saxony the FDP collapsed to 0.9% and the Greens barely passed the bar with 5.1%. Chancellor Scholz's SPD continued to slide into oblivion, getting only 6.1% in Thuringia and 7.3% in Saxony.
It was a vote in favour of diplomacy instead of war, an end to arms supplies to Ukraine, the restoration of the Nord Stream pipelines and the restoration of constructive relations with Russia. The BSW benefited from a considerable mobilisation of non-voters, fed up with the other parties, which contributed to the high turnout in both states: Saxony 74.4%, Thuringia 73%.
In Thuringia, the Christian Democrats, in the opposition, obtained 23.6%, putting them in second place behind the AfD with 32.8%, and in Saxony, where they governed, 31.9%, just edging out the AfD, which obtained 30.6%. The CDU's success can be explained by the fact that in Dresden the party broke away from the warmongering line of the national leadership. Governor Michael Kretschmer sided against the party leadership in favour of good relations with Russia and the reopening of the Nord Stream pipeline.
The BSW got 15.8% and 11.8% respectively. Sahra Wagenknecht's party (photo) submitted a motion to the Bundestag for a debate after the summer recess on the stationing of US missiles. The other parties will not support the motion, further sanctioning the detachment from the voters.
Will the national government draw the necessary consequences from the electoral disaster? Internationally, the term “ungovernability” may soon become synonymous with “Germany”. As things stand, perhaps none of the three coalition partners will survive the next Bundestag elections, scheduled for September 2025. This explains the calls already circulating for early elections, or at least for a change in the composition of the government. The FDP, for instance, might decide to leave the government to avoid disappearing completely. Moreover, the outcome of the US presidential elections in November will certainly have an impact on the decisions of the German elites.
Meanwhile, the topic of war or peace will gain in importance. It is hoped that the “shocking results” of the AfD and the BSW will finally bring the national debate to such crucial issues for the future of the whole of Europe and beyond, stimulating the emergence of a large anti-war movement.
“Will the national government draw the necessary consequences from the electoral disaster?” Well… if you ask me, no. I have not seen the German government drawing any consequence from the electoral disaster. After all, why expecting otherwise, considering that these were only local elections and also what has happened in France, following Emmanuel Macron’s debacle at the snap legislative elections he himself called. And what has changed in France? Nothing! Macron is still clinging to power and refusing to acknowledge the results of the elections to appoint a left-wing government! Actually, just two days ago he appointed center-right Michel Barnier as Prime Minister (see for instance this Al Mayadeen article), blissfully ignoring the electoral victory of the New Popular Front (NFP) alliance, a coalition of left-wing parties… WTF!? But, hey… let’s keep calling Western nations “democracies”, while they refuse recognizing results of regular elections not only in Russia and Venezuela, but now even in their own countries!
P.S.: On a similar topic, I also recommend this interesting article on the Strategic Culture Foundation website: Neoliberalism: the antechamber of fascism!
People want peace, and they're voting accordingly. Meanwhile, traditional parties are becoming more totalitarian. Ugly.
ismaele! you summed it up well at the end... when democracy doesn't work for the oligarchs, just keep on clinging to power regardless, lol.... at this point macron is a disgrace... meanwhile a similar dynamic is unfolding in germany... could it be that people want peace as opposed to propaganda?? i think so and i believe many can see thru the bullshit that is being spread on them.. kudos to the germans and french who can see how they are being completely ignored and continue to seek alternatives to those who continue to cling to power..