Just a few days after his surprising exit from the AfD, their ex-boss is already holding talks about a new political home. “I work politically with passion,” said Meuthen Süddeutsche Zeitung. “I’ll remain an MEP. But I’m also in talks with potential new partners,” said the 60-year-old. A decision should be made soon. “There will be clarity in the near future,” Meuthen announced.
Apparently Meuthen can imagine helping to found a new political force in Germany. “From my point of view, there is a significant gap in representation in the conservative-free area in the German party spectrum due to the clear shift to the left of the CDU on the one hand and the increasing drift of the AfD to the right on the other,” Meuthen continued. “That’s becoming more than clear these days.”
Meuthen not only resigned the party chairmanship of the AfD after six and a half years on Friday. He had also left the party with harsh criticism of its radicalization and the contempt for parliamentarism by parts of the AfD. “The sum of many events” persuaded him to do so, says Meuthen. Most recently, for example, “the insult to the President of the European Parliament, David Sassoli, who had died just a few hours earlier, by an AfD MEP. “The never-ending revelations of horrific AfD chat amounts also stunned me.” He had hardly given AfD appearances in the Bundestag , said Meuthen, “The shame of others had reached an all-time high.”
He sees hard times ahead for his former party in the coming months. Above all, he thinks it likely that the Office for the Protection of the Constitution will take tougher action against the entire party. “The observation will probably come,” warns Meuthen. According to the ex-boss, this will cost the AfD many members in the moderate camp. “That will trigger a noticeable exodus in the foreseeable future. Many will leave the party, such as members of the public sector or righteous conservatives, who will then withdraw.”
Moderate camp wants more dual leadership
He himself did not deliver the AfD to the knife with his criticism, Meuthen defends himself against the claim that he appears as a key witness. “These are the ones who keep damaging the AfD with radical failures.” Meuthen also sharply criticized the remaining AfD co-boss Tino Chrupalla. “So far there has been a lack of any credible differentiation from the radicals,” says Meuthen. In the next few months he will have to show his colors “how he deals with these forces in the AfD”.
Meanwhile, in the AfD, the debate about a new leadership is picking up speed. The remaining co-boss Tino Chrupalla had signaled at weekend appearances that he wanted to lead the party alone for the time being. Chrupalla, who is assigned to the party’s right-wing camp, said he would now “bring the party together, keep it together.”
The camp, which is moderate by AfD standards, is now making claims and is clearly in favor of sticking to the previous management model. “The AfD will continue to need dual leadership in the future,” says Joana Cotar, a member of the Bundestag and a member of the party’s federal executive board. “I am sure that the AfD will agree on this at the next party conference. The time has not yet come to do without it.”
The member of parliament from Hesse, who stood in the election of the AfD top candidates for the federal elections, advocates that the two camps agree on a common leadership and is striving for a “leading role” https://www.sueddeutsche.de /politik/.”The goal of the AfD is a consensus board. We have to show that it can also be done without a dispute. But that only works with two spokespersons who also represent the camps of the party.”