Union in Bavaria, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt: No to the AfD

Holetschek: Democracy is under pressure, from the right and the left

"We know that democracy is under pressure, from the right and the left," said Holetschek. "We stand together against extremism - and it is also clear with regard to the AfD that there will be no cooperation." Hartmann said: "We also want to make it clear that there cannot and will not be any cooperation with the AfD in the form of coalitions and collaborations, and that we will also draw a clear line here." Heuer also ruled out an alliance with the left: "There will be no cooperation with the AfD, and there will also be no coalition with the left - that is also very clear to me," he said.

Hartmann also argued, however, that distancing oneself from the AfD does not mean excluding it. We don't want to make it easy for the AfD to appear as martyrs. "That's why we also need political discourse to make it clear who stands for what in this country," he emphasized.

The three parliamentary group leaders are also firmly opposed to any extremism from the left: The continued growth of left-wing populist and left-wing extremist tendencies is also a challenge to democracy that must be taken seriously, the joint paper states.