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Andreas Kalbitz (born 17 November 1972) is a German politician and was from 2013 to 2020 member of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) and since 2017 chairman of the AfD Brandenburg faction of his former party in the Landtag of Brandenburg, a state parliament.[1]
Andreas Kalbitz | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Kalbitz in 2016 | |
| Leader of the Opposition in the Landtag of Brandenburg | |
| In office 25 September 2019 – 18 August 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Ingo Senftleben |
| Succeeded by | Hans-Christoph Berndt |
| Leader of the Alternative for Germany in Brandenburg | |
| In office 8 April 2017 – 15 May 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Alexander Gauland |
| Succeeded by | vacant |
| Leader of Alternative for Germany in the Landtag of Brandenburg | |
| In office 7 November 2017 – 18 August 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Alexander Gauland |
| Succeeded by | Hans-Christoph Berndt |
| Member of the Landtag of Brandenburg | |
| Assumed office 8 October 2014 | |
| Constituency | State Wide Party List |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Andreas Edwin Kalbitz 17 November 1972 Munich, Bavaria, West Germany |
| Political party | Independent (since 2020) |
| Other political affiliations | Alternative for Germany (2013–2020) |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | Brandenburg University of Applied Sciences (no degree) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Germany |
| Branch/service |  Bundeswehr |
| Years of service | 1994–2005 |
| Rank |  Oberfeldwebel |
| Unit |  Army (Heer) |
Life and politics
editKalbitz was born 1972 in Munich and became a paratrooper in the Bundeswehr, the German federal army from 1994 until 2005.[2] His claims that in 2008 he had studied Informatik (computer science) proved false in 2017.[3] Kalbitz was member of various extremist right-wing organisations before he entered the newly founded AfD in 2013.[1] One of those extremist right-wing organisations, a banned neo-Nazi group called German Youths Loyal to the Fatherland, became the reason he was expelled from the party as he allegedly declined to notify the party while joining in 2013.[4]
In May 2020, Kalbitz was removed as Brandenburg Landtag chairman by the party leadership after he was accused of concealing ties to far-right extremist groups. He was succeeded by provisional leader Dennis Hohloch.[5] Also in May, the AfD annulled the membership of Kalbitz, who in response vowed to "exhaust all legal options" to overrule the decision.[6] In an interview the same month, co-spokesman of the AfD Jörg Meuthen emphasized that the decision had been made on legal rather than political grounds.[7]
In August 2020, Kalbitz punched Hohloch while inside the Brandenburg parliament building, causing Hohloch to be admitted to hospital with internal injuries.[8][9]
He has participated in Pegida rallies in the early 2020s alongside Björn Höcke among others, both before and after he was expelled from the AfD.[10][11]
References
edit- ^ a b "Kalbitz gibt Teilnahme an rechtsextremem Lager zu". Süddeutsche Zeitung. 6 April 2018. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- ^ Gebauer, Matthias; Müller, Ann-Katrin (8 November 2019). "Kalbitz geriet als Soldat ins Visier des MAD". Der Spiegel (in German). Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- ^ Lauterbach, Jürgen (30 September 2017). "Andreas Kalbitz schönt seinen Lebenslauf". MAZ - Märkische Allgemeine (in German). Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- ^ Oltermann, Philip (18 August 2020). "Suspended AfD politician's 'friendly' punch put colleague in hospital". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
- ^ "Punch throws Germany's AfD into uproar". Financial Times. 24 August 2020. Archived from the original on 24 August 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
- ^ "Germany's populist AfD party boots far-right leader Kalbitz". Deutsche Welle. 15 May 2020. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- ^ May, Philipp (16 May 2020). ""Es ging um eine rechtliche, nicht um eine politische Beurteilung" (Interview with Jörg Meuthen)". Deutschlandfunk (in German). Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- ^ Sternberg, Jan (17 August 2020). "AfD-Mann im Krankenhaus: Kalbitz verletzt Parteifreund mit Boxschlag zur Begrüßung" (in German). RND. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
- ^ Oltermann, Philip (18 August 2020). "Suspended AfD politician's 'friendly' punch put colleague in hospital". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 20 May 2022. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
- ^ Reinhard, Doreen (18 February 2020). "Sturm um Höcke". Zeit Online (in German).
- ^ "Starker Protest gegen Pegida-Kundgebung in Dresden". MDR (in German). 7 November 2023.