The AfD parliamentary group in the Bundestag continues to shrink. The Hessian MP Joana Cotar announced on Monday morning that she was leaving the parliamentary group and party. She cited the internal party disputes and substantive differences as the reason. The party had “crossed too many red lines”.
In her press release, she writes of “opportunism” or the “building of corrupt networks” in the party. “In the fight against opponents within the party, constant bullying is the order of the day – encouraged by the top of the party and its networks.” In terms of content, Cotar criticizes “the AfD’s pandering to the dictatorial and inhuman regimes in Russia, China and now also Iran” – these are “unworthy of an upright democratic and patriotic party”. Cotar writes: “I stood and stand for a constructive, liberal, conservative policy based on the Basic Law.”
The step is not easy for her after ten years in the AfD, writes CotarAfter all, she helped build the party in Hesse. She wants to continue to be a member of the Bundestag, but she is not resigning from her mandate.
Cotar was considered one of the last more moderate representatives in the AfD. Before the federal elections in 2021, she wanted to be the top candidate, but failed in the membership vote: together with Joachim Wundrak, she lost to the duo of Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla. In the parliamentary group, she has so far acted as digital policy spokeswoman.
Cotar is not the first MP to leave the AfD parliamentary group in this legislative period. Since the election a good year ago, this has shrunk from 83 to 78 members. The former AfD deputies Johannes Huber, Uwe Witt, Matthias Helferich and Robert Farle now sit in parliament as non-attached members.