OREANDA-NEWS. On Friday, October 8, a representative of the Left Party was elected chairman of the Bundesrat (representative office of the federal lands of Germany) for the first time. He became the Prime Minister of Thuringia Bodo Ramelow. From November 1, he will replace the representative of the Christian Democratic Union Reiner Haseloff.

Hazeloff, who heads the government of the state of Saxony-Anhalt, expressed concern about the growing polarization in the country in his farewell speech as chairman of the Bundesrat. «Recently, we have seen a dwindling respect for democratic norms and institutions», he said and called on fellow citizens to «defend an open society, every day anew and with greater determination». Hatred and harassment have no place in German society, Haseloff stressed. In turn, Ramelow has already stated that he intends to campaign for the cohesion of society.

The Chairman of the Bundesrat is elected annually from among the prime ministers of the lands. It performs mainly representative functions. After Ramelow is elected to this position, Hazeloff will remain the first vice-chairman, and the second will be the Mayor of Hamburg, Peter Tschentscher.