Berlin’s head of government Kai Wegner (CDU) has Result of the state election in Brandenburg as “another disaster for the traffic light government” at the federal level. “Almost every second person in Brandenburg also voted for a populist party,” Wegner told the Tagesspiegel. “This is not an East German problem, it is a problem for the whole of Germany and, above all, it is a problem for the centrist parties.”
Wegner called on the federal government to “finally take people’s worries and fears seriously and act.” All parties in the political center must end “uncontrolled migration to Germany.” “We must ensure security – including social security. We must succeed in ensuring that people in Germany are no longer afraid of losing their livelihoods.”
This result is his merit alone.
Kai Wegner, Governing Mayor of Berlin, about Dietmar Woidke (SPD)
According to projections from Sunday evening, the AfD received almost 30 percent of the vote, putting it in second place. The Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) coalition came in second with around twelve percent. Wegner congratulated the election winner, Dietmar Woidke from the SPD (around 31 percent). “This result is his achievement alone,” he said. He looked forward to “further, trusting cooperation.” Brandenburg must now quickly set up a stable government, which is “indispensable for the continued positive development of our shared metropolitan region.”
Wegner did not explicitly comment on the CDU’s result, which was the worst since 1990 at around twelve percent. “I would like to thank Jan Redmann and the CDU Brandenburg for the courageous election campaign,” he said.
Berlin SPD sees election victory as a blueprint
Berlin SPD chairwoman Nicola Böcker-Giannini sees the strong election result of the Brandenburg SPD as a possible blueprint for her regional association. “It is clear that a strong personality like Dietmar Woidke, together with a good program, has won in Brandenburg,” Böcker-Giannini told RBB. Berlin must now also “start developing its program.” The party is doing this with the “Berlin 2035” renewal process initiated by the two chairmen.
Philmon Ghirmai and Nina Stahr, chairmen of the Berlin Greens, spoke of a “difficult framework” for the Greens, who at the time of going to press for this issue were still worried about getting into the state parliament. “The political discourse is currently characterized by hostility and populism,” both said. The CDU and the BSW are also contributing to this, having repeatedly declared the Greens to be their main enemy. SPD Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke has the “political responsibility to form a coalition with parties from the democratic spectrum that do not act as Putin’s henchmen.”
The AfD parliamentary group leader in the Berlin House of Representatives, Kristin Brinker, spoke in the RBB “Abendschau” of a “super great result” for the Brandenburg AfD. The question of whether her regional association, which was recently at 12 percent in a survey by Infratest dimap, would now follow the even more radical course of the Brandenburg AfD was brushed aside by Brinker, referring to the different conditions in Berlin and Brandenburg. In Berlin, too, she feels more and more support from young voters and small and medium-sized companies.
According to the managing director of the Berlin-Brandenburg business associations, Alexander Schirp, the election result gives hope that “a stable state government with a clear profile is possible.” “This is an important prerequisite for a policy that ensures a strong economy and a strong country and continues the successful work of recent years. Stability and clear conditions are crucial for companies.”
