The Free Voters (FW) in Saxony have opposed a firewall for the AfD. In doing so, they were reacting to a resolution passed the day before at the federal party conference in Bitburg, which stipulates a ban on cooperation with the AfD. The Saxon FW boss Thomas Weidinger said they took note of this decision but did not support it. He sees no major impact on his party in Saxony as a result of the decision.
“The free voters in the municipalities are independent of parties and are therefore not affected by the above-mentioned decision anyway,” said Weidinger. A firewall is not helpful “when it comes to solving concrete factual problems,” he continued, without giving any further reasons. The State Association of Free Voters therefore does not rule out cooperation with the AfD. She wants to “establish this proven approach to policy at the state level.”
Both Free voters It is a very heterogeneous party, as the individual state and local associations have so far had a strong regional focus and therefore each have their own focus areas. Its federal chairman is Hubert Aiwanger, the deputy prime minister of Bavaria. Last year he came under widespread criticism when, during the Bavarian election campaign, he demanded that the “majority must take back democracy.” It also became public that an anti-Semitic leaflet was found in his backpack while he was at school.
More on the topic: Free voters
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Saxon FW want to appeal to AfD voters
“We have not had good experiences with building walls in Germany,” said Weidinger. He was referring to the Berlin Wall, apparently without any logical connection.
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The state chairman continued: “Behind a firewall, the AfD voters, whom we want to win back to the middle class, would also disappear.” It should not matter which political party submits applications in the Saxon state parliament. “Our election program rightly emphasizes that a good idea remains a good idea, regardless of who it comes from,” said the politician.
In the 2019 Saxon state elections, the Free Voters missed out on entering parliament with 3.4 percent of the second votes. This year they expect better chances.
The Free Voters (FW) in Saxony have opposed a firewall for the AfD. In doing so, they were reacting to a resolution passed the day before at the federal party conference in Bitburg, which stipulates a ban on cooperation with the AfD. The Saxon FW boss Thomas Weidinger said they took note of this decision but did not support it. He sees no major impact on his party in Saxony as a result of the decision.
“The free voters in the municipalities are independent of parties and are therefore not affected by the above-mentioned decision anyway,” said Weidinger. A firewall is not helpful “when it comes to solving concrete factual problems,” he continued, without giving any further reasons. The State Association of Free Voters therefore does not rule out cooperation with the AfD. She wants to “establish this proven approach to policy at the state level.”