Far right AfD politician takes office after win in German election

 

SONNEBERG – A politician from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party took up his post as a district administrator on Monday, following his victory in a local election that provoked headlines across the country.

Robert Sesselmann formally took office in the Sonneberg district in the state of Thuringia after emerging the victor in a run-off election on June 25.

He was the first AfD candidate to win an election of this kind. Coming against the background of strong polling by the AfD nationwide – notching up voter support of around 20% in some polls – the election led to a heated debate among mainstream parties and political analysts about the direction of Germany’s democracy.

Sonneberg, with its population of 57,000, is one of the country’s smallest districts.
The AfD in Thuringia is under observation by the domestic intelligence services after being officially listed as extremist.

The Thuringia Interior Ministry said that Sesselmann would be monitored to ensure that he did not pose a threat to democratic norms on the basis of regulations contained in the state’s legislation on local elections.

Sesselmann said his main task lay in consolidating the Sonneberg budget. “Only on the basis of sustainable district finances and cutting the local levy, will we be able to maintain our home district,” he said in a statement.

One week after Sesselmann’s election, an AfD candidate was elected mayor in the small town of Raguhn-Jeßnitz in the neighbouring state of Saxony-Anhalt.

The election victory was the first of its kind for the party, although a mayor in the south-western state of Baden-Württemberg had switched to the AfD while in office up to 2020.