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German state gets new governor, with far-right votes
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| Contributor | Bojicat |
| Last Edited | Bojicat Feb 05, 2020 04:04pm |
| Category | News |
| News Date | Feb 05, 2020 04:00pm |
| Description | BERLIN (AP) - A pro-business politician was unexpectedly elected Wednesday as the governor of an eastern German state after a far-right party threw its votes behind him, a result that raises awkward questions for Germany's mainstream center-right parties.
Left-leaning parties assailed their rivals for allowing the far-right Alternative for Germany, which is particularly strong in the ex-communist east, to help put a center-right candidate in power in Thuringia state - the first time that has happened.
Thomas Kemmerich of the Free Democrats, a party that only just secured enough support to enter the state legislature in an October election, threw his hat in the ring after left-wing incumbent Bodo Ramelow failed to secure a majority during two rounds of voting by lawmakers.
Kemmerich ousted Ramelow in a 45-44 vote, with one abstention. Alternative for Germany, or AfD, the second-strongest party in Thuringia, fielded a candidate of its own but then ended up supporting Kemmerich in the final vote. Chancellor Angela Merkel's center-right Christian Democrats also backed him and did not field their own candidate. |
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