Hasted cross scandal in the Stuttgart state parliament: Who is behind it?

Hasted cross scandal in the Stuttgart state parliament: Who is behind it?

Stuttgart, Deutschland - On July 24, 2025, a troubling incident caused outrage in the Baden-Württemberg state parliament in Stuttgart. In the event of a secret coordination for the election of representatives in the Upper Rhine Council, a ballot was smeared with a swastika. According to the [Tagesschau], this was done during a critical vote that was carried out at the request of the AfD.

President of the Landtag Muhterem Aras from the Greens described the incident as "disgusting" and a shame for parliamentary democracy. She pointed out that the use of anti -constitutional signs is a criminal offense. The affected ballot was apparently thrown in during the vote for the election of AfD candidates, and the swastika was emblazoned in the yes box alongside the name of the candidate Bernhard Eisenhut.

The reactions of the political groups

across the party borders was a unanimous condemnation of the incident. CDU boss Manuel Hagel expressed that such symbols in the heart of democracy had "nothing to look for". He criticized the swastika as a symbol of contempt for people and hatred. The SPD even called for the person responsible for this incident, while the FDP demanded research on the identity of the return. However, an AfD member rejected any connection to the smeared ballot and emphasized the innocence of his faction in this context, as was already reported in an article by [evening newspaper].

background information on the Oberrheinrat

The Upper Rhine Council for which representatives should be elected during this session is a trinational parliament, which consists of members of the partial regions of Alsace, North and South Baden, Südpfalz and northwestern Switzerland. He meets twice a year and deals with cross -border topics. The election to the Oberrheinrat was not the first controversial coordination for the AfD; Before that, the parliamentary group had also failed to vote representatives to the board of trustees of the State Center for Political Education.

Now the ball lies with the investigative authorities who examine how this incident could occur and who is responsible for the swastika. The state administration can currently not make any statements about the urn from which the smeared ballot