Katja Wolf and Thuringia ministers quit BSW party in revolt against Sahra Wagenknecht
Deputy Prime Minister Katja Wolf, three cabinet ministers, and state lawmakers have resigned from Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht in Erfurt, preserving their coalition with the CDU and SPD while breaking with the federal party founder.
The rupture in Erfurt
On Friday, Thuringia Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Katja Wolf announced a formal break with Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW), joined by all three of the party's state cabinet ministers and a group of state lawmakers. The collective resignation follows months of public disputes with federal party founder Sahra Wagenknecht over the Thuringian coalition government. Wolf confirmed that nearly the entire Thuringian state executive board resigned from the party, including co-chair Gernot Süßmuth, who stated that the party could no longer be saved. A planned special state party conference scheduled for Sunday was cancelled two days before it was set to convene. Wolf and parliamentary group leader Sigrid Hupach affirmed that the lawmakers intend to remain together in the state legislature and continue governing alongside the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD).
Katja Wolf explained the decision at a joint press conference in Erfurt.
We were and still are convinced of the founding consensus of the BSW. But standing here today, we must state that the party has moved away from this founding consensus.
- One lawmaker resigns from the BSW party
- Stefan Wogawa, Dirk Hoffmeister, and Roberto Kobelt leave the party and parliamentary group
- Sahra Wagenknecht criticizes early departures at a campaign appearance in Halle
- Katja Wolf, all three ministers, and the state board announce their party resignation
Escalation over coalition strategy
The division between the state leadership and the federal headquarters in Berlin centers on government participation and strategy toward other political factions. Wagenknecht repeatedly opposed the tripartite alliance in Thuringia, advocating instead for a non-partisan head of government operating with fluctuating majorities that would include the Alternative for Germany (AfD). The federal leadership had formally instructed Thuringian lawmakers to withdraw their backing from Minister-President Mario Voigt and exit the state government. Wolf and her colleagues rejected that directive, arguing that their mandate required practical governance rather than parliamentary paralysis.
Wolf rejected any cooperation with the far right during her address on Friday.
We were not elected for flirts with right-wing radicals.
Seat counts and parliamentary mathematics
The departures alter the voting balance in the 88-seat Thuringian Landtag, where the governing coalition previously held exactly 44 seats in a deadlock with the opposition. Earlier in the week, one lawmaker resigned from the party, followed on Wednesday by lawmakers Stefan Wogawa, Dirk Hoffmeister, and Roberto Kobelt, who left both the BSW party and its parliamentary group, reducing the group from 15 to 12 members. On Friday, ten of the remaining twelve lawmakers declared their resignation from the BSW party while choosing to remain in the parliamentary group. Together, the CDU, the SPD, and the twelve members of the former BSW group hold 41 seats, falling four votes short of the 45-seat threshold required for a legislative majority. Minister-President Voigt reiterated his commitment to continue governing with the existing cabinet.
Voigt addressed the alliance alongside Wolf and Interior Minister Georg Maier.
Today is a day of clarity.
- CDU, SPD, and former BSW group
- 41 seats
- Die Linke
- 12 seats
- Majority threshold
- 45 seats
Reactions from Berlin and the opposition
Sahra Wagenknecht responded sharply to the mass resignation during a campaign appearance in Halle (Saale) ahead of the state election in Saxony-Anhalt. Wagenknecht claimed that the timing of the departures was deliberately chosen to cause maximum damage to the federal party before upcoming regional ballots. She asserted that Wolf and her allies had acted on team CDU over the two years since the state election, adding that the regional party list had been captured by individuals uncommitted to voter expectations. In Erfurt, opposition parties described the situation differently. Christian Schaft, the parliamentary group leader for Die Linke, whose 12 seats have provided informal backing on select legislation since 2024, called for fresh talks and declared that the coalition had ceased to function in its original form.
Christian Schaft offered his assessment of the governing arrangement following the announcements.
With today, from our perspective, the government coalition has collapsed.
