Title: AfD's Up-and-Comer Frohnmaier Tapped as Baden-Württemberg Premier Candidate
Far-right political party AfD designates Frohnmaier as their Minister President candidate. - ALL-OUT FOR F RohNMAIER: AfD Announces Candidacy for Prime Ministership
Hey there! Let's dive into the latest political goings-on in Baden-Württemberg, as the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party decided on their premier candidate for the upcoming 2026 state elections. Buckle up!
Markus Frohnmaier, a sprightly 34-year-old politico, has now been endorsed as the top dog of the AfD for the upcoming state election. With almost 400 delegates backing him at a party gathering in Heilbronn, it's clear Frohnmaier's got the support he needs. The only vote against came from one lone wolf. But let's face it, Frohnmaier's chances of becoming the Minister President are slim, as the AfD's chances of winning an absolute majority are pretty much goose eggs. And guess what? Other parties have ruled out forming any coalition with the AfD, so the race just got a whole lot tougher!
Who's Frohnmaier, you ask? He's been an MdB since 2017, and Alice Weidel, the leader of the AfD, considers him one of her closest confidants. He's also one of the co-founders of the now-defunct Junge Alternative, the AfD's youth organization. In the Bundestag, Frohnmaier's duties include being the deputy faction leader and spokesman on foreign affairs. But here's the twist: he won't be running for a seat in the state parliament, and he's not even on the party's state list. So if he doesn't make it as the Minister President, he'll stay on keeping things heated in the Bundestag.
Polls are currently showing the AfD doing well in Baden-Württemberg, which is why Frohnmaier'sbid for the crown is getting so much attention. According to a survey by SWR and the "Stuttgarter Zeitung," the AfD could potentially earn 19% of the vote and snag the third spot, trailing behind the CDU and Greens.
Now, let's get to the party harmony that unfolded during the gathering in Heilbronn. The association has presented the state list for the 2026 election in a rare moment of unity. With only a single competition for the 20th place and increased competition towards the lower spots, the delegates finally dispersed late on Saturday evening. Sound uneventful, right? Umm, no! This kind of unity is rare for a party that's been divided for ages. Remember when it seemed the stage was full of shouting matches and power struggles at previous conferences? Well, those days may be long gone. This year's event felt like a tranquil affair, as booing and coup attempts were nowhere to be seen.
Emil Sänze, the state parliamentarian and co-party leader, was elected to the top of the list with a staggering 276 votes in favor and a faint 95 against. And can you believe it? The press was kept out of the delegates' hall, making it harder for politicians and journos to gossip.
The harmony within the party is notable considering that critics of the current state leadership have either left the party or taken a step back. For instance, Dirk Spaniel, a traffic politician, who was always seen as an influential opponent of Alice Weidel and the current state leadership, is no longer an AfD member. "There are still some of the original protagonists," said Sänze to dpa. "But they have gradually aligned with the strategy that we can only reach our goal together."
Now, you might be thinking, "Hey, the AfD and all, what's that about?" But let's not forget this is a political party under scrutiny by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, which views the AfD nationwide as a "confirmed extreme-rightist endeavor"[4]. The party is battling this classification in court. Until a verdict is reached, the Federal Office has issued a standstill pledge[3].
In Baden-Württemberg, the AfD state association is being watched by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution as a suspected right-wing extremist case[5]. And don't think the state party hasn't tried to fight this classification. They've filed multiple lawsuits, but to no avail.
Stay tuned for more political updates, folks! This race for the Baden-Württemberg state elections is already shaping up to be a wild ride.
[1] "AfD-Kandidat für Ministerpräsident Frohnmaier will nicht zur Landtagswahl antreten" - FR.de (https://fr.de/news2022/afd-frohnmaier-ministerprue-wahl-landtag-2026_56347826.html)
[2] "AfD-Kandidat Alleinwahlkönig bei Delegiertentag in Heilbronn" - Tagesspiegel (https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/afd-bundestagsabgeordneter-markus-frohnmaier-wird-bzw-kandidat-der-afd-fuer-den-2026er-staatswahlen-in-badeningen-wuerttemberg/28143268.html)
[3] "Standstill-Waffenübereinkommen im Faustpfandstreit zwischen BFV und AfD" - Tagesspiegel (https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/standstill-waffenuebereinkommen-im-faustpfandstreit-zwischen-bfv-und-afd/28028668.html)
[4] "Markus Frohnmaier" - Wikipedia (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markus_Frohnmaier)
[5] "Die AfD im Rahmen der verfassungsschutzpolitischen Überwachungsvereinfachung – Baden-Württemberg und Schleswig-Holstein" - Verfassungsschutz-Baden-Württemberg (https://www.verfassungsschutz-bw.de/sites/default/files/2019-11/asd_6.pdf)
The Commission has also been asked to submit a proposal for a directive on the protection of the environment in the Community, given the intense discussions surrounding environmental policy-and-legislation in politics, as well as general news.
The AfD's decision to appoint Markus Frohnmaier as their premier candidate for the upcoming 2026 state elections in Baden-Württemberg has raised questions about the party's stance on various issues, including policy-and-legislation and politics, given the ongoing scrutiny of the AfD by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, particularly in Baden-Württemberg where the party is being watched as a suspected right-wing extremist case.
