Overview
- Finance Minister and deputy minister-president Robert Crumbach left the BSW party and its Landtag group and asked to join the SPD parliamentary group as a non-party member.
- BSW leaders demanded Crumbach relinquish his mandate and urged Minister-President Dietmar Woidke to dismiss him, while declaring they still back the coalition and will propose a successor if needed.
- The SPD questioned BSW’s reliability and set a deadline for a single, formal pledge of support from all BSW deputies, with party figures signaling contingency planning that could include opening talks with the CDU.
- Crumbach said parts of BSW were trying to wage opposition from within the government and criticized statements by party founder Sahra Wagenknecht, arguing the party no longer reflects his values.
- The governing majority is razor-thin after earlier BSW splits, and decisions by two previously departed deputies are pending on Tuesday, while new elections are considered unlikely under current rules.