Sahra Wagenknecht, the founder of the BSW, has acknowledged past mistakes made during the early stages of the “Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht.” Speaking to the news portal T-Online, she stated, “Anyone who brings a new party into existence makes errors,” specifically pointing to the highly restrictive membership policies and the party’s participation in governments.
Regarding the stringent admission criteria, Wagenknecht explained that the original idea was to prevent young parties from being overwhelmed by opportunists and careerists-individuals only motivated by money and mandates-which often leads to arguments and internal power struggles. However, she admitted that hoping to prevent this entirely was an illusion. “Instead, we denied membership to many honest supporters for far too long.”
She also considered the BSW’s premature entry into governing coalitions as another significant oversight. “We should have known back then that such a young party should not enter a government,” she remarked. “A party that young lacks the necessary experience and can therefore be consumed by the established players in the political arena.” Wagenknecht concluded by stating that if the BSW wins seats in the state parliament of Saxony-Anhalt, she does not expect the party to appoint ministers after the election.
