Several former senior figures of the Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) in the German state of Thuringia have founded a new political party following a deepening conflict with party founder Sahra Wagenknecht and the national leadership. The new party, named Thüringen.Gerecht ("Thuringia.Fair"), was officially established in Erfurt on Sunday. Former BSW state chair and Thuringia's Finance Minister Katja Wolf was elected as the party's leader, according to a spokesperson.
Among the prominent founding members are Steffen Schütz, who previously served alongside Wolf as co-chair of the BSW in Thuringia and currently holds the position of Infrastructure and Digital Affairs Minister, as well as former BSW managing director Steffi Eschrich.
The creation of Thüringen.Gerecht follows the final collapse of a long-running dispute between the BSW's federal leadership and its Thuringian branch over the state's participation in government.
Earlier this week, all but two BSW members of the Thuringian state parliament left the party, with some also departing from the parliamentary group. The split marked the culmination of a fundamental disagreement over the party's political direction and its role within the state's coalition government.
BSW is currently part of the governing coalition in Thuringia alongside the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) under Minister-President Mario Voigt. The breakup of the BSW and the disintegration of its parliamentary group has increased pressure on the coalition, which already lacks an absolute majority in the state parliament.
To pass major measures such as the state budget, the coalition has relied on support from the Left Party. Meanwhile, the Alternative for Germany (AfD), classified by the state domestic intelligence agency as right-wing extremist, remains the largest parliamentary group.Despite the political uncertainty, Voigt, Wolf and SPD state leader Georg Maier reaffirmed their commitment to the coalition on Friday. Wolf stated that she and her allies continue to feel bound by the coalition agreement signed with the CDU and SPD despite leaving the BSW.
"We promised to provide stability and reliability in Thuringia," Wolf said on Sunday. "Now we invite everyone to help us turn that promise into reality."
The party's founding members also adopted an initial political platform focused on six core issues. According to a party statement, Thüringen.Gerecht will campaign for fair wages, recognition of East German life achievements, industrial value creation and innovation, environmental protection, affordable energy, sustainable investment and stronger citizen participation.
Wolf said the newly elected executive board intends to organize a founding party congress as quickly as possible.
Wolf and other former Thuringian BSW leaders said they left the party because of what they described as increasing interference from the federal leadership and a lack of sufficient distance from the AfD. According to the former state leaders, the BSW national leadership openly pushed the Thuringian branch and its lawmakers to abandon the coalition government.
They further argued that the federal party wanted Minister-President Voigt removed and replaced by a "non-partisan minister-president" who would govern through shifting parliamentary majorities, including support from the AfD. Similar proposals have also been discussed by the BSW leadership in relation to other eastern German states, including neighboring Saxony-Anhalt.
Despite the departure of most members, the BSW parliamentary group in the Thuringian state parliament continues to exist legally for now, according to Wolf and parliamentary group chair Anke Hupach.
The group is scheduled to meet on Wednesday and could make further decisions regarding its future structure. Under German parliamentary rules, elected lawmakers can leave one party and join another party or parliamentary group without losing their seats.
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