(Adnkronos) – Alice Weidel, co-leader of the far-right party Alternative for Germany (Alternative fuer Deutschland, AfD), has called for new general elections, emphasizing that her party is ready to govern.
“Given the disastrous situation of the coalition (between conservatives and social democrats), in our opinion, calling new elections would be the clearest solution,” she told The Pioneer.
“It is now up to the citizens to decide who should lead the country out of the crisis. We are ready to do it,” the party leader stated.
Weidel has repeatedly suggested the possibility of national elections. Already at a party congress held months ago, the AfD had announced that the party was preparing for such a scenario.
In national polls, the AfD has long held the top spot, with support up to 29%, while the coalition parties, namely the conservative alliance CDU/CSU and the Social Democrats (SPD), stand at only around 20% and 13% respectively.
Asked about the possibility of the AfD tolerating a hypothetical minority government led by Markus Söder, Prime Minister of Bavaria and leader of the Christian Social Union (CSU), or by Hendrik Wüst, a Christian Democrat leading North Rhine-Westphalia, Weidel replied that her party remains “willing to open dialogue and engage in serious discussions with anyone, if it serves the good of the country”.
“Whether they (Söder or Wüst) are willing to do so, given the obstacles they themselves have erected, is another matter,” Weidel observed, alluding to the conservatives’ refusal to cooperate with the AfD.
The incumbent chancellor, Friedrich Merz, has come under fire following his party’s heavy electoral defeat in Saxony-Anhalt and the clear rise of the AfD in that eastern region. Added to this are the low approval ratings recorded in popularity polls.
