Benda Re-elected as BSW Brandenburg Chair After Challenger Withdraws

A Congress Marked by Coalition Fallout

The Cottbus gathering was the first BSW Brandenburg state party congress since the collapse of Germany's first SPD-BSW coalition at the federal-state level in January. Minister-President Dietmar Woidke of the SPD declared the coalition over after weeks of infighting within the BSW parliamentary group and several departures from the party and its parliamentary group.

In her speech to delegates, Benda rejected the notion that disputes over the media state treaty or the invitation of the Russian ambassador to the state parliament had caused the coalition to end. "Die Reibereien um den Medienstaatsvertrag oder die Einladung des russischen Botschafters in den Landtag haben nicht zum Ende der Koalition geführt," she said.

Instead, Benda placed the blame squarely on the SPD. "Die Koalition wurde durch die SPD exakt in dem Moment aufgekündigt, als zwei BSW-Abgeordnete in die SPD-Fraktion gewechselt sind und dadurch eine Mehrheit mit der CDU ermöglicht wurde," she stated, referring to the two BSW state parliament members who switched to the SPD faction.

Sharp Attacks on the SPD

Benda launched a sharp attack on her former coalition partner, accusing the SPD of having "jeglichen demokratischen Kompass verloren" by opposing new elections after the coalition collapsed. She added that arguments claiming avoiding new elections served stability were previously known only from dictatorships. "Solche Argumente kannte man bisher nur aus Diktaturen," she said.

"Nicht wir sind politikunfähig, die SPD ist demokratieunfähig!" Benda declared to applause. She argued that the BSW is distinguished from other parties by "Standhaftigkeit angesichts mächtiger Feinde und Glaubwürdigkeit" — steadfastness in the face of powerful enemies and credibility.

Benda claimed that a relevant number of people no longer feel represented in the established party system, including on peace policy and migration and integration policy. She attributed high AfD poll numbers to a lack of trust in the problem-solving ability of politics. "Das führt zu den hohen Umfragewerten der AfD," she said.

Peace Policy and Foreign Affairs

On foreign policy, Benda said the danger of Germany being drawn into a war is as great as it has not been since the Cuban Missile Crisis. She called the BSW "die einzige wahre Friedenspartei" in this situation and warned that it is madness when great powers again position missiles against each other. "Wir betonen, dass die Brandenburger Frieden und nicht im Aufmarschgebiet leben wollen," she stated.

The congress was not without internal tension. Potsdam mathematics professor Wolfram Meyerhöfer was loudly booed when he said the BSW is deeply divided. Meyerhöfer argued that the state chair's task is to hold the party together and that Benda failed to do so, noting that one-third of the BSW state parliamentary group was lost when it broke apart last year.

The booing drew criticism from Potsdam city councilor Monika Keilholz, who asked: "Was sind wir hier – ein Haufen Stänkerer?" Frank-Peter Gaebert from Oberhavel subsequently withdrew his candidacy for deputy state chair because he could not condone the discussion culture in the hall. Henrik Lehmann from Oberhavel also withdrew his candidacy.

Internal Divisions Surface

Falk Peschel, parliamentary managing director of the BSW state parliamentary group, received loud applause when he contradicted Meyerhöfer and praised Benda as a clever and forward-looking politician who held things together during the coalition break. "In dieser Phase hatten wir mit Friederike eine kluge und vorausschauende Politikerin, die in diesem Landesverband die Fäden zusammengehalten hat," Peschel said.

BSW federal chair Fabio Di Masi received standing ovations at the start of the party congress. Di Masi spoke in favor of recommissioning the Nord Stream pipeline and called for diplomatic initiatives to end the Ukraine war. "Putin hat vorgeschlagen, schickt den Gerhard Schröder hin. Das muss man ja nicht machen, aber man hätte zum Beispiel sagen können: Dann schicken wir eben die Merkel hin," he said.

Federal Chair Calls for Nord Stream Revival

The BSW state leadership submitted a motion calling on the state government to pursue diplomatic initiatives toward Russia in order to resume importing Russian energy soon. Russia has been waging a war of aggression against Ukraine since 2022. The party conference also addressed emergency aid for small businesses and limiting the intake of refugees.

Benda told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur that the BSW has been able to keep its poll numbers stable since she took over the state chair. "Wir haben in den Umfragen, seitdem ich den Landesvorsitz übernehmen durfte, unsere Werte stabil halten können als BSW," she said. In recent polls, the BSW stood at 8 percent in the Sunday question.

Benda replaced former state leader Robert Crumbach in summer 2025. Crumbach has since returned to the SPD. The leadership election took place roughly five months after the coalition breakup in Brandenburg.