Brandenburg’s Minister President, Dietmar Woidke (SPD), has firmly rejected any involvement of the Linke party in the Berlin government. Speaking to the “Tagesspiegel”, Woidke expressed his worry, stating, “I hope it won’t happen.” He advised his party in Berlin to distance itself from an alliance with the Linke, arguing that the party in its current form is unfit to govern.
Woidke grounded his objections in serious policy concerns, claiming that elements of the Berlin Linke are antisemitic, show open support for organized crime, and advocate for weakening the police and justice system-a situation he described as a security risk for Berlin. Furthermore, he criticized the “expropriation fantasies” of the Linke, specifically their desire to socialize housing corporations, claiming that this approach harms both construction and the economy of the capital region. He added that he also views the Linke negatively regarding plans to establish defense industry facilities.
Despite having led a “red-green” alliance in Brandenburg from 2013 to 2019, Woidke insists this past cooperation does not change his view. He emphasized that the Linke he previously worked with in Brandenburg was “politically positioned completely differently” than the party operating in Berlin.
On a separate political front, Woidke dissented from calls by regional leaders, such as Markus Söder (CSU, Bavaria) and Boris Rhein (CDU, Hesse), to cut financial transfers to Berlin. He stated that such threatening behavior “only helps the wrongdoers,” reminding listeners that the Basic Law provides constitutional guarantees for the federal financial equalization process.
Looking toward the future, the Brandenburg chief of government indicated that he is not ruling out an early resignation before the 2029 state election. “I am aware of my responsibility to this state, and I will fulfill that responsibility,” Woidke told the “Tagesspiegel”. He confirmed that a decision-whether he continues or a timely transition occurs-would be made in consultation with his party and his wife. He noted that since he has not reached the halfway mark of his current legislative term, “I have temporarily pushed such thoughts back.” Woidke has been governing Brandenburg since 2013, making him Germany’s longest-serving minister president.
Shifting to national political trends, Woidke addressed the AfD’s recent electoral successes in Sachsen-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. He cautioned against a growing “anti-East sentiment” in the western federal states. According to Woidke, this debate is based on a fundamental misconception-the idea that only “the stupid people in the East” vote for the AfD, and that this cannot happen in the West. He stressed that “reality is already different,” reaching into regions as far as Bavaria.
He pointed out that the AfD, which has been the strongest force nationwide in polls for months, is likely to gain further ground in regions such as North Rhine-Westphalia, Schleswig-Holstein, or Saarland by 2027. Woidke argued that the political center of the republic must ask itself how this has occurred. He questioned, “What have we done wrong if so many people are following those who have no solutions?” He concluded that the rise of the extreme right is not merely an East or West problem, but rather a challenge facing all of Germany.
