His name is Dietmar Woidke: he's
the man in the spotlight of the upcoming local elections in
Germany, where Brandenburg will vote on Sunday. And this time he
is a Social Democrat. After the triumph of the ultra-right in
Thuringia a fortnight ago, AFD's advance in the state
surrounding Berlin also seems difficult to stem: the party is in
the lead and has been showing a slight advantage for weeks over
the SPD, which has ruled here uninterruptedly since
Reunification.
The outgoing president has dared a bold move, asking voters
to choose: either him or them. And this means that should his
party come in second, as the polls predict while remaining the
region's most beloved politician, Woidke will step back and hand
over the baton to the current finance councilor for coalition
negotiations.
This is an unnecessary risk and one that could indeed cost
him the next legislature: although ahead, in fact, Alternative
fuer Deutschland remains, as everywhere at the federal level, an
isolated party and will not be able to govern.
Next Sunday's polls are also the third and final test of the
season (and year) for Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who is grappling
with an increasingly fragile government and a dramatic drop in
support, including personal support. Some analysts think that
Kanzler will lose either way. If Woidke wins, the victory will
be attributed to the personal merits of a politician who, in
government for 11 years, has distanced himself from Berlin and
the federal leader.
According to one of the latest surveys by INSA, AFD would win
28 percent, with the SPD following with 25 percent. The CDU
would have 16 percent of support, Sarah Wagenknecht's red-brown
populist party BSW 14. Out of the small parliament would remain
the ecologists with 4 percent and the left-wing Linke with 3.
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