BSW Politician Steffen Quasebarth Appears on Right-Wing AfD Podcast

Quasebarth defends his decision as an effort to engage disillusioned voters, drawing criticism from political peers.

Steffen Quasebarth, a BSW politician and Vice President of the Thuringian state parliament, appeared on a podcast hosted by the AfD's Thuringian faction, which is classified as right-wing extremist by the state’s intelligence agency.
This marks the first time a member of another party has been a guest on the AfD's podcast, which was co-hosted by Stefan Möller and Björn Höcke, leaders of the Thuringian AfD.
Quasebarth stated that his intention was to engage with AfD voters, not its leadership, in an effort to address their frustrations and win them back to other political alternatives.
The podcast discussion covered topics such as Quasebarth's political journey, media influence, election processes, and racism, with Quasebarth criticizing certain AfD tactics as dangerous to societal trust.
Political figures, including Thuringia's SPD leader Georg Maier, criticized Quasebarth's participation, calling it politically naive and expressing concern over legitimizing the AfD’s positions.