The strongly conservative Heimatunion in the Saxon CDU is pushing for a minority government in the Free State. "It won't be comfortable, of course, but it will be the best thing for Saxony," Ulrich Link, spokesman for the association, told the German Press Agency. He justified this with reservations about the Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) alliance. The talks between the CDU, SPD and BSW were viewed with concern. As in 2019, it is about the integration of a third, "strongly ideological partner".
Kretschmer considers a minority government to be the worse option
Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer has so far rejected a minority government. "The difference is: in a minority government, you are in negotiations every day. With every topic, every law, every budget, every small proposal, the discussion starts all over again. That ties up an incredible amount of energy. That's why a coalition is always the better way," he said in a recent interview.
Forces within the Saxon CDU in favor of dialogue with the AfD
In the previous week, CDU members from the Leipzig area had already spoken out against an alliance with the BSW. The statement, which was also signed by two former CDU ministers, called for a "new political culture of cooperation". It said that we must also talk to the AfD and need "bridge builders and not firewalls". As long as political opponents do not use violence, they should "not be seen as the enemy". Central political goals of the CDU could not be realized "red-green-dark-red".
Former CDU parliamentary group leader Frank Kupfer, who also served as Minister for the Environment and Agriculture, was one of the signatories of the letter and reiterated his position. "30 percent of voters voted AfD. And you can't just put these people in a corner, you have to talk to them," he told the Sächsische Zeitung newspaper. He was not interested in coalitions, but in talks. They could be over after an hour, but then at least they had tried.
