German regional premier resigns in row over far-right

BERLIN: The recently elected head of Thuringia, an eastern German state, resigned on Saturday in the wake of a political row over support he had received from the far-right AfD party.

"I announce my resignation as Thuringia minister-president effective immediately," said Thomas Kemmerich of the liberal Free Democrats, one of Germany’s smaller parties. Kemmerich was elected to the post on Wednesday, with the backing not just of regional deputies from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s CDU party but of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

It was the first time a state premier had been elected with the help of the far right, crossing a red line in Germany where mainstream parties have always ruled out working with the AfD.

On Thursday, a day after his election and in the face of growing outrage over the vote, Kemmerich had offered his resignation and called for snap elections.

On Friday, regional CDU leader Mike Mohring said he would be stepping down in May after ignoring pleas by party leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer not to vote alongside the AfD. And on Saturday, Merkel effectively dismissed Christian Hirte, the government’s commissioner for eastern Germany and a junior minister, after he congratulated Kemmerich for his success.