State election live: Ramelow is the only top candidate to win a direct mandate

Around 550 people gathered in front of the state parliament in Erfurt on Sunday evening. According to the police, the rally was registered by the “Auf die Plätze” alliance and is currently moving towards Juri-Gagarin-Ring. According to the police, there were isolated incidents. Among other things, individual demonstrators had temporarily put on masks. However, the masks were removed again after the police asked them to do so. A YouTuber close to the AfD was asked to leave the area.

The demonstration is causing major disruptions in the city. Bus traffic is also affected. According to Erfurt’s public transport company, the Landtag, Rosengasse and Thomaseck stops cannot be reached. There are also delays in bus traffic.

The first electoral district in Thuringia has been counted: In the Sonneberg I electoral district, the AfD direct candidate Jürgen Treutler is in first place. After counting the 55 electoral districts, he has 42.6 percent. Beate Meißner from the CDU is in second place with 39.3 percent. Treutler (73) is expected to be the oldest member of parliament if she enters the state parliament and would therefore chair the constituent session as the oldest member. Susanna Karawanskij (LEFT) has 9.7 percent.

The Left Party’s co-state chairman Christian Schaft has called on the CDU to seek talks on further political action in the next few days. In view of the fact that a new state parliament must be constituted in the next few weeks, it is important that the Left Party is also included in the further talks. However, a party conference resolution of the Christian Democrats prohibits the Left Party from working together.

At the same time, Schaft blamed the BSW and its Thuringian top candidate Katja Wolf for his party’s heavy loss of votes. Wolf ran to belittle the AfD. “Instead, she belittled us,” said the politician.

The punk rock band “Feine Sahne Fischfilet” from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania has once again traveled to Sonneberg for a concert. The police estimate that as of 8 p.m. there were around 1,500 people on the premises in front of the “Gewölbe” bar. “It’s pretty loud – but from a police perspective everything is quiet and within limits,” said the Sonneberg police station. The concert started at 7 p.m. In July 2023, the band had already played a garage concert in the small town. At that time, 1,000 people came.

According to the latest projections by infratest dimap, a coalition of CDU, BSW and SPD would not achieve a majority in Thuringia. In total, the three factions received 44 of 88 seats, one less than necessary. Only after all votes have been counted will it be clear whether the state parliament may become larger due to overhang and compensatory mandates. There are indications that the AfD will get more than a third (31) of the seats. It would then reach the so-called blocking minority and could block various political projects, such as constitutional amendments.

Purely mathematically, coalitions of BSW and AfD as well as CDU and AfD would have a majority. Before the election, however, BSW and CDU had ruled out such cooperation with the AfD. According to figures, a coalition of CDU, BSW and the Left would also be possible. However, this option is considered difficult to implement: There is an incompatibility resolution by the Union with the Left, and the BSW split from the Left under the leadership of Sarah Wagenknecht.

In the Gotha II constituency, Matthias Hey of the SPD and Stephan Steinbrück of the AfD are almost neck and neck. After 51 of 59 constituencies have been counted, Steinbrück is narrowly ahead with 34.9 percent, ahead of Hey with 34.3 percent. In the last state election in 2019, the leader of the Thuringian SPD parliamentary group won the only direct mandate for the Social Democrats in the state parliament.

The DGB Hessen-Thüringen has called on the Thuringian parties to form a responsible government. The DGB district chairman Michael Rudolph said that the AfD’s increase in votes was noted with great concern. The extent of support for a party that propagates division and racism is alarming.

It is more important than ever to offer employees in Thuringia security and prospects and to advocate for a strong, social and democratic coexistence. People need secure jobs and income. Now it is up to the democratic parties to set the course for the future in Thuringia.

Mike Mohring (CDU) is unlikely to secure a seat in the state parliament. After 75 of 114 constituencies have been counted, he is behind Brunhilde Ursula Margit Nauer (AfD) with 29.8 percent, who is ahead with 42.7 percent. The current Minister of Culture Benjamin Immanuel Hoff (Left Party) is currently at around 14.5 percent. Dirk Slawinsky of the SPD currently has 7.3 percent of the vote. Gerd Gunstheimer of the Free Voters is currently at 5.7 percent.

According to the third projection by infratest dimap, a coalition of CDU, BSW and SPD would only have a razor-thin majority in Thuringia. In total, the three factions would receive 45 of 88 seats. Only after all votes have been counted will it be clear whether the state parliament may become larger through transitional and compensatory mandates. There are indications that the AfD will get more than a third (31) of the seats. It would then reach the so-called blocking minority and could block various political projects, such as constitutional amendments.

Mathematically, coalitions of BSW and AfD as well as CDU and AfD would have a majority. However, BSW and CDU had ruled out such cooperation with the AfD before the election.