The MDR presenter Steffen Quasebarth is planning a move into politics. He is running for the Sahra Wagenknecht alliance in Thuringia.
In an interview with “Stern”, Steffen Quasebarth, presenter of the “Thüringen Journal” on Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR), announced his ambitions to go into politics. The moderator would like to run for the “Alliance Sahra Wagenknecht” (BSW) and is aiming for one of the first five places on the list for the state elections in Thuringia.
He quit his previous job at MDR to pursue his political career. “I have always had the desire to get involved politically. But that didn’t fit with my previous job. It was always clear to me: either you work in the media and observe what is happening. Or you can help shape it,” he told “Stern”.
His desire to go into politics now seems to be becoming a reality. Quasebarth is aiming to get one of the top five places on the list for the state elections in Thuringia at the upcoming BSW state party conference. On this basis, Sahra Wagenknecht invited him to join her party, Quasebarth continued. Katja Wolf, the mayor of Eisenach and former left-wing politician, is considered the top candidate.
Last Sunday he moderated the “Thüringen Journal” for the last time. After three decades as a presenter at MDR, Quasebarth has now left the station at his own request, as MDR reports.
The Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk recognizes his many years of work: “Steffen Quasebarth’s professionalism was always exemplary, and his commitment over the many years was impressive,” praises state broadcasting center director Astrid Plenk.
The BSW had already tried to put this into perspective before the district council and mayoral elections on Sunday in Thuringia: “The result of the local elections will have no meaning,” said the Thuringian BSW state chairwoman and former mayor of Eisenach, Katja Wolf, to the Tagesspiegel. The alliance only ran in the elections in individual districts and municipalities.
The successor to the former left-wing politician for the mayor’s office in Eisenach was not yet finally decided on Sunday. None of the two CDU and SPD candidates had achieved the majority necessary to win the election. They will take part in the runoff election on June 9th.
According to the latest surveys by “INSA” and “Infratest dimap”, if there were state elections in Thuringia next Sunday, the “Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance” would already win 15 to 16 percent of the vote – and could therefore be in their first election move into the state parliament.
In terms of approval ratings, she would therefore be on a par with her former party “The Left”, which is currently the government in Thuringia under Bodo Ramelow. In the last state election, “The Left” won 31 percent of the votes.
According to the survey, by far the strongest force would be the AfD around Björn Höcke with around 30 percent of the vote. The CDU is currently in second place in the polls with 20 percent, while the SPD can currently only convince 7 to 9 percent of Thuringians. The Greens currently have to worry about entering the state parliament at 5 percent – the FDP would no longer be represented in parliament in Erfurt with two percent. The next state election in Thuringia is in autumn 2024.
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