A few days after the AfD’s electoral victory in Rhineland‑Palatinate, the party’s state chairman and top candidate, Jan Bollinger, was ousted as leader of the state parliament group. In an internal vote the caucus elected Michael Büge, who won 18 to 6, as the new parliamentary leader, a decision reported on Wednesday by SWR, among other outlets.
Bollinger has headed the AfD’s Rhineland‑Palatinate division since May 2022 and took over as parliamentary group leader in November 2023. Despite the party’s record-breaking result at the state election, recent reports indicate growing dissatisfaction with Bollinger within the party. His position as party chair could come under scrutiny in the next election.
Büge, a former member of the CDU, previously served as a state secretary in Berlin’s Senate department for health and social affairs. Since October 2017 he has worked as the AfD’s parliamentary business manager in Rhineland‑Palatinate’s state parliament.
