The last television debate before the Thuringian state election on September 1st will take place without Björn Höcke. He withdrew his promise to participate months ago at short notice.
The AfD’s top candidate in Thuringia, Björn Höcke, has temporarily withdrawn from the election campaign. A spokesman for Höcke cited “health reasons” as the explanation. He did not say whether it was due to a specific illness or a fainting spell. There are state elections in Thuringia on Sunday. The AfD, with its top candidate Höcke, is clearly ahead in the polls.
Höcke also canceled his participation in the final discussion round of all seven top candidates, which “Antenne Thüringen” and ntv will broadcast live this Wednesday at 5 p.m. “Mr. Höcke cannot participate for health reasons,” a spokesman explained. “He has to take a break.”
First Höcke cancellation already on Monday
On Monday, Höcke had already tried to cancel the round of ntv and Antenne Thüringen – the date and his acceptance had already been set three months ago. At first he gave “private reasons” for the cancellation, but was not prepared to be more specific when asked.
Finally, on Tuesday, Höcke again confirmed his participation and apologized to ntv and Antenne Thüringen for all the “inconvenience”. Finally, on Wednesday morning, another cancellation came, this time final. Höcke’s co-state spokesman for the AfD Thuringia, Stefan Möller, will take part as a replacement. You can follow the TV debate live on stern.de in the late afternoon.
According to most observers, the TV rounds so far, including on MDR, have not gone well for Höcke. He seemed erratic and not very quick-witted, they said. It cannot be ruled out that Höcke will no longer want to take any risks in the final stretch of the election campaign. The AfD has been stable at around 30 percent in the polls for weeks.
State elections
These candidates are on the list in Thuringia
Höcke is scheduled to appear at an election rally in Nordhausen on Thursday afternoon. A party spokesman told the starthat he was not aware of any change in plans.
Source: Stern
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