AfD leader Frauke Petry announces the decision to resign after election success. Far-right AfD co-leader walks out on party days after electoral breakthrough.
: AfD's Petry announces departure from far-right party days after it became Germany's 3rd-strongest force pic.twitter.com/EjzSN3rRN0
— dpa international (@dpa_intl)
“It’s clear that this step is coming,” she told dpa, although she did not set a date for when she would leave the AfD.
On Monday, in a joint appearance with lead candidates Alice Weidel and Alexander Gauland after the AfD entered the Bundestag with 94 seats, Petry surprised her fellow party leaders by announcing she would vote as an independent.
She said her decision was based on her belief that.extremist statements made by other party leaders precluded it from exercising “constructive opposition.” Petry won her seat in parliament outright in her local district.
In the wake of that bombshell, Weidel and other leading lights in the AfD had called on Petry to quit the party. The lead candidates were still nonplussed the day after Petry’s surprise announcement but said they didn’t think it was the sign of major rebellion.
“We don’t think there will be another deputy, but we’ll have to wait at see,” Weidel said.
Petry’s step surprised us us all, but thus far we can’t see that it’s a trend.”
“I hope not,” said Gauland when asked whether he thought there would be other “defections” from the AfD. “But I can’t read people’s minds.”
It is expected that Gauland and Weidel will be elected the AfD’s parliamentary leaders later on Tuesday or on Wednesday.
