Bremen Mayor Andreas Bovenschulte of the SPD has sharply criticized the manner in which the CDU and CSU are treating the Left Party. The SPD politician told the “Tagesspiegel” that the Union must cease its “completely irrational and irresponsible hysterical state.” While political opposition to a left-wing mayor-especially one who disagrees with preliminary negotiation results and criticizes them-is allowed, Bovenschulte emphasized that this criticism must not devolve into a complete loss of judgment and balance.
Bovenschulte stated that what the Union is currently doing is “not remotely tolerable.” He argued that the Union is grouping internal disagreements over political positions with resistance to constitutional extremists, a mixture he insists should not be permitted.
He accused the Union of downplaying the immediate threat of a far-right government takeover in Saxony-Anhalt. However, he stressed that the prospect of democratic parties merely pursuing a program that someone personally dislikes is fundamentally different from the threat of a regressive governmental takeover. As currently running a three-way coalition in Bremen since 2019 (comprising the SPD, Greens, and Left), Bovenschulte found the Union’s recent conduct-from the Federal Chancellor to the Bavarian Minister-President and the Young Union-difficult to tolerate.
His central criticism is that the Union is devaluing the term “extremism” and blurring the line to constitutional enemies by lumped the Left Party in with the AfD. Furthermore, he called the Union’s stance hypocritical. He reminded the public that cooperation with the Left Party was necessary to enable the second round of elections, which resulted in Friedrich Merz being elected Federal Chancellor. He also pointed out that the CDU relies on cooperation with the local Left faction in states like Saxony and Thuringia.
Therefore, Bovenschulte urgently called on the CDU to adjust its standards as soon as possible. While he accepts that hard political confrontations are legitimate, he opposes the equivalence drawn between the Left Party and constitutional enemies or far-right extremists. He expects the Union to maintain a clear and unambiguous stance in the future.
Separately, the SPD and Greens voted on Monday evening in Berlin in favor of including the Left Party in coalition talks, with only the Left’s consent pending; the party plans to make its decision at its state party convention on October 31st.
