Escalation and departures in Erfurt

Tensions between the Thuringia state leadership and the federal board of the Buendnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) culminated on Friday in mass party resignations. Thirteen of the 15 lawmakers elected for the BSW in the Thuringian Landtag left the party this week. The split peaked on Friday morning when Finance Minister Katja Wolf, two fellow cabinet ministers, and nine parliamentary deputies resigned. Wolf cited sustained pressure from federal party founder Sahra Wagenknecht, who urged the regional branch to quit the governing coalition to sharpen anti-establishment messaging before elections in Saxony-Anhalt.

State politicians also opposed federal overtures toward the Alternative for Germany (AfD), including direct talks between Wagenknecht and Thuringian AfD leader Bjoern Hoecke. Wolf announced the resignation of the state executive committee, while co-chair Gernot Suessmuth also stepped down. Wolf explained her break with federal leadership:

“Thuringia has become a plaything.”

Coalition future and parliamentary seat mathematics

Following the resignations, Minister-President Mario Voigt of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Katja Wolf, and Interior Minister Georg Maier of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) held a joint press conference in Erfurt to confirm that the cabinet will continue. Voigt affirmed that the CDU considers the ten non-party deputies continuing partners. Wolf reaffirmed her group's commitment to the coalition pact. Maier welcomed the end of external interference, though he noted that the SPD must review the situation in party committees and may hold a member vote.

“It was clear to me for a long time that this day would come.”

The departures alter the balance in the 88-seat Landtag, where the CDU, BSW, and SPD alliance held 44 seats, previously relying on Left Party abstentions for majorities. One deputy left the party earlier in the week, and three lawmakers left both party and faction mid-week, cutting the faction to 12 members. With ten former BSW deputies in the faction backing the cabinet and two BSW loyalists opposed, Voigt can count on roughly 39 committed votes. Three independent deputies plan to establish a separate group.

National BSW backlash and Brandenburg precedent

In Berlin, BSW federal co-chair Fabio De Masi condemned the departures as a coordinated move timed ahead of upcoming state elections, asserting that federal leaders had anticipated the action for weeks. De Masi accused Wolf of aligning with the CDU rather than her own party:

“She does not play on team BSW.”

BSW General Secretary Oliver Ruhnert scheduled an online meeting with Thuringian members on Friday evening, while party leaders cancelled a special state congress scheduled for Sunday. Brandenburg BSW leader Friederike Benda argued that the split brought needed clarity for the Saxony-Anhalt campaign by rejecting traditional firewall policies against the AfD. The Thuringian crisis follows events in Brandenburg, where Minister-President Dietmar Woidke ended the SPD-BSW coalition in January after five of 14 deputies left the BSW, prompting former state leader Robert Crumbach and deputy Jouleen Gruhn to join the SPD.

Voter polling on Voigt and the administration

An INSA opinion poll conducted between 26 August and 2 September 2026 for the BSW surveyed 1,000 Thuringian adults on the state leadership. The survey found that 39% of respondents favored Voigt resigning as minister-president, while 29% supported him remaining in office. Another 17% expressed indifference toward Voigt's position, 9% were undecided, and 6% gave no answer.

Favor resignation39%

Support staying in office29%

Indifferent17%

Undecided9%

No response6%

Favor resignation

39 %

Support staying in office

29 %

Indifferent

17 %

Undecided

9 %

No response

6 %

Data from the article text

Wagenknecht cited the poll results to argue that the Erfurt coalition lacked public trust and called for a new political beginning:

“Mario Voigt must finally resign.”