Controversial figure of the German left, Sahra Wagenknecht was sprayed with paint during a campaign rally in Erfurg, Thuringia. The region is preparing for elections this weekend. The far right is the favourite.
Controversial figure of the German left, Sahra Wagenknecht was sprayed with paint during a campaign rally in Erfurg, Thuringia. The region is preparing for elections this weekend. The far right is the favourite.
Sahra Wagenknecht, 55, head of the quasi-eponymous BSW party, the Alliance for Sahra Wagenknecht, created a few months ago, is a divisive political figure in Germany.
This is evidenced by the incident that occurred on Thursday at Domplatz in Erfurt, in the Thuringia region. While she was giving a speech, a man tried to spray her with red paint. The politician was then escorted by a bodyguard before returning to the stage.
“Thank you so much for all the concerns you have expressed. I am fine. I am just still a little scared. But don’t worry: we will not be intimidated,” she posted a few hours later on the social network X.
The incident comes as regional elections are due to be held this weekend in Saxony and Thuringia. In both regions, the far-right AfD party is credited with 30% of voting intentions.
Sahra Wagenknecht’s BSW is credited with 17% in Thuringia and 14% in Saxony. A relative popularity for the politician whose profile is disturbing.
A former communist, her policies, which appeal to many voters, are a mixture of left-wing and far-right ideas.
An admirer of Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro, she is, for example, in favour of more taxes for the richest and an increase in the minimum wage.
She also wants to limit immigration and wants to create asylum centres outside the EU, as Italy is currently doing with Albania. She also wants arms deliveries to Ukraine and to buy Russian gas.
The incident at her campaign rally also reflects a rise in political violence in Germany. In May, a female Berlin politician was violently attacked and injured in the head and neck.
Earlier, a candidate from Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s party was defeated in the eastern city of Dresden while campaigning and required surgery.
The government and opposition parties say their members and supporters have faced a wave of physical and verbal attacks in recent months, and have asked police to step up protection for politicians at campaign rallies.