State premier resigns

Dieter Althaus had governed Thuringia since 2003, providing Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) with an important ally in eastern Germany. But since the conservatives lost their absolute majority in state elections in Thuringia, Althaus has been under pressure to resign.

Some Christian Democrats are concerned that their poor showing in Thuringia and two other states last Sunday could bode ill for their chances in the federal election scheduled for Sept. 27. While opinion polls suggest Chancellor Merkel will likely to return to power, she’d like to get enough votes to do it without having to enter into another grand coalition with the Social Democrats (SPD).

But just such a power-sharing scenario looks likely to happen in Thuringia. Merkel said as much Thursday, when she acknowledged that Althaus’ resignation might be what was needed for coalition talks between the SPD and CDU to get going. The SPD had said it wouldn’t consider partnering with the CDU in Thuringia as long as Althaus was in the picture.

"The way is clear now for the Social Democrats to enter into serious discussions with the CDU on the formation of a government," Merkel said.

Thuringia state government up in the air

While the CDU still has the largest number of votes following Sunday's election in Thuringia, the Social Democrats will likely be the kingmakers. The SPD has said it will hold talks with all parties before deciding on its preferred coalition partner.

SPD chancellor candidate Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he sees Althaus’ resignation as “a consequence of the dramatic losses from last weekend.”

Exploratory discussions between party officials are planned for the coming days, with the SPD to talk with the Left party on Friday and the CDU on Saturday.

Althaus accident main cause of CDU fallout

Although the CDU had been long slipping in Thuringia opinion polls, the party received a major blow in January when Althaus was involved in a skiing accident in Austria that resulted in the death of a 41-year-old woman.

Althaus himself suffered severe head injuries in the crash and claimed to have no recollection of the event after falling into a brief coma. He was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and forced to pay fines by an Austrian court.

Although he stayed on as premier and chairman of the CDU in Thuringia after the accident, his approval ratings never recovered.

th/glb/dpa/Reuters/AP
Editor: Chuck Penfold