Berlin Left Party Lawmaker Rejects Leadership Demand to Resign Seat

Vanessa Emde, a newly elected member of the Berlin House of Representatives for Die Linke, has rejected a formal request from her party’s state leadership to resign her parliamentary seat. State party co-chairs Kerstin Wolter and Maximilian Schirmer announced the decision following an executive board meeting on Friday, stating: “We no longer trust her.”

In a press release issued on Sunday, Emde firmly dismissed the demand, declaring: “Of course I will continue to exercise my mandate!” Emde added that democratically obtained mandates were not subject to negotiation. She secured her seat by winning a direct mandate in the Berlin district of Neukölln with 46.2 percent of the vote. Emde maintained that any potential coalition in Berlin must implement the referendum on expropriating large real estate corporations, demonstrate solidarity with Palestine, and avoid social spending cuts.

The state executive board accused Emde of repeatedly violating party decisions and parliamentary group agreements. Party leaders stated that she had publicly questioned group declarations, joined a demonstration against her own party outside its state congress, and failed to distance herself from individuals who celebrated the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023, as legitimate resistance. The leadership gave Emde a one-week deadline to delete specific Instagram posts, issue an apology, and commit to constructive cooperation, warning that failure to meet these terms could lead to her expulsion from the parliamentary group.

Emde has faced internal criticism within Die Linke for her stance on the Middle East conflict. In May, she publicly stated that states do not have a right to exist in remarks directed at Israel, and she has repeatedly accused Israel of committing genocide with German support. Although Emde signed an internal group statement against antisemitism and affirming Israel's right to exist during the constituent faction meeting on October 13, she subsequently published a social media video criticizing the agreement. She has also faced scrutiny for public appearances alongside controversial local activists, including an individual associated by observers with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).

The internal dispute places further strain on preliminary coalition negotiations between the Social Democrats, Greens, and Die Linke in Berlin. Representatives of both the SPD and the Greens had previously voiced concerns regarding Emde’s positions. Excluding Emde from the parliamentary group would require a two-thirds majority vote among its members.

Written by Sandy van Dongen sandy.vandongen@alpineweekly.com