AfD top candidate Hans-Christoph Berndt is once again a directly elected representative in the state parliament in Potsdam. The 67-year-old won the direct mandate in the Dahme-Spreewald III constituency in the Brandenburg state election. According to the state election commission, Berndt received 39.3 percent of the first votes, while the SPD candidate Nadine Graßmel received 33.3 percent. Benjamin Raschke, one of the two top candidates for the Greens, received only 1.7 percent of the first votes.
Berndt did significantly better than in the 2019 state election, in which he received 28.9 percent of the first votes in the same constituency. The AfD’s top candidate entered the state parliament for the first time five years ago. He took over the parliamentary group chairmanship from Andreas Kalbitz the following year. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution classifies Berndt as right-wing extremist. The most recent report by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution states that the 67-year-old prefers to seek proximity to right-wing extremist actors.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240922-930-240237/1
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