AfD wins first German state parliament speaker post in Saxony-Anhalt as Tobias Rausch is elected

Presidium elections in Magdeburg

The state parliament of Saxony-Anhalt elected 35-year-old Tobias Rausch of Alternative for Germany (AfD) as its president during its constituent session on Tuesday. AfD politician Hans-Thomas Tillschneider secured the post of vice president in a secret ballot, while the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) took a second vice-presidential seat with an education politician named Carsten. Rausch becomes the first politician from the far-right party to serve as speaker of a German state parliament since World War II. Tillschneider received 44 yes votes and 38 no votes, with zero abstentions recorded in the first round of voting. The vote followed the regional election in September, where the AfD secured 43.8% of the vote and 39 seats in the state legislature.

Scrutiny over secret ballot votes

The 44 votes cast in favor of Tillschneider match the combined seat total of the AfD and the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) in the parliament. Thomas Schulze, the parliamentary group leader for BSW in Saxony-Anhalt, stated that his faction did not vote for Tillschneider. Because the ballot was secret, the exact origin of the five additional votes beyond the AfD's 39 deputies remains unverified. Tillschneider addressed the outcome directly following the confirmation of the tally.

Of course I campaigned for myself and had several conversations, and apparently that bore fruit here and there.

Tillschneider, who previously drew public attention for his 2023 trip to the Moscow Security Conference, stated that he intends to exercise his new office in a professional and inconspicuous manner.

Opening address and parliamentary changes

The constituent sitting opened under the leadership of Die Linke parliamentary group leader Eva von Angern, who served as Alterspräsidentin based on legislative tenure dating back to 2002. A previous modification to the rules of procedure based the presiding role on continuous parliamentary service rather than biological age, bypassing AfD deputy Frank-Ronald Bischoff. In her opening remarks, von Angern referenced Clara Zetkin's 1932 address and reminded the chamber that seven weeks were enough to establish a dictatorship in 1933. The session also implemented a revised seating layout that placed the 39 AfD lawmakers in the center of the plenary hall. Outside the building in Magdeburg, approximately 500 demonstrators protested against the election of AfD figures to the parliamentary leadership.

Political responses across state borders

The vote generated immediate reactions from politicians in neighbouring Mecklenburg-Vorpommern following their own state election on 20 September. Enrico Schult, the AfD group leader in the Schwerin parliament, congratulated Rausch and demanded that other parties respect parliamentary convention by granting his party the speaker position in Schwerin.

It corresponds to parliamentary tradition that the strongest parliamentary group provides the parliament president.

Julian Barlen, the SPD parliamentary group leader in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, rejected Schult's demand and cited parliamentary disruptions in Thuringia as evidence against granting power to the AfD.

Those who intimidate political opponents and threaten them with persecution cannot simultaneously demand democratic normalcy.