SPD General Secretary Tim Klüssendorf has sharply criticized the election of AfD politician Tobias Rausch as the President of the State Parliament in Saxony-Anhalt, directing his ire particularly at the CDU. Speaking to the “Rheinische Post,” Klüssendorf stated that the election of an AfD politician to this post is fatal not only for the people of Saxony-Anhalt but for the country as a whole.
He further asserted that the BSW made a deliberate choice in backing Rausch, marking the first time since 1945 that a politician from a right-wing party has been elected the head of a German parliament. Klüssendorf added that not only this, but four other deputies also made a conscious decision to elect a politician from a right-wing party to the presidency of the state parliament.
Klüssendorf made a clear demand of the CDU: they must immediately identify anyone within their ranks who considered this “fatal decision” to be correct. He emphasized that anyone who wishes to protect democracy has a historical responsibility to keep right-wing forces away from political power at every moment and in every sphere.
He reassured the public that the SPD will never elect or put right-wing individuals into positions of responsibility, a promise on which citizens can rely. Klüssendorf concluded by stating that the party remains available to all who share his and the concerns of many in the country. Together with the strong democratic civil society in Saxony-Anhalt, the SPD will continue to fight for a better future where the dignity of every person is inviolable and where everyone can live in freedom, solidarity, and justice.
