Thuringia elects conservative speaker after far-right election win

In a significant political event in Thuringia, eastern Germany, lawmakers elected Thadäus König from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) as the new speaker of the state parliament. This election, which took place over two days, marked a departure from the traditional practice of appointing the strongest party's candidate, following the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party's historic win in the regional elections on September 1, where they secured nearly one-third of the votes. Despite this electoral success, the AfD did not achieve a majority, and other parties expressed their refusal to collaborate with them. The election process was marred by controversy, particularly due to the conduct of AfD's Jürgen Treutler, who chaired the initial parliamentary session. Treutler faced criticism for limiting debate and not allowing other parties to propose candidates for the speaker's position. This led to a legal challenge from the CDU, resulting in a court ruling that permitted changes to the procedural rules before the election. Ultimately, König was elected with 54 votes against AfD's Wiebke Muhsal, who had previously faced legal issues related to fraud. The election outcome reflects the broader political landscape in Thuringia, where no party is willing to form a government with the AfD, which is under surveillance by the domestic intelligence agency due to its extremist ties. The future of governance in Thuringia remains uncertain, with potential coalitions being discussed, including an unlikely alliance involving the CDU, a new leftist party, and the Social Democrats, which would still fall short of a majority without support from the Left Party.