Bundestag deputy and leader of her own party Sarah Wagenknecht said she would not be intimidated and would continue to defend her political position. The politician stated this today, on August 30, on her page on the social network "X", commenting on the attack that occurred the day before during an election event in Erfurt.
"Many thanks to everyone for the caring questions: everything is fine with me. I'm just still a little shaken up. But do not worry: we will not be afraid!" — said the chairman of the party "Union Sarah Wagenknecht — for reason and justice."
The day before, an unknown person tried to drench Wagenknecht with red paint during an election event in Erfurt. According to law enforcement agencies, the offender was a 50-year-old man. The parliamentarian was forced to temporarily leave the stage, but soon returned to the voters and continued her speech.
The security service officers promptly knocked down the attacker, who used "something similar to a medical syringe" for provocation, handcuffed him, and then took the man away from the event.
Commenting on the motives of the attacker, politician Steffen Kwasebart, the main candidate of the Sarah Wagenknecht Union in the upcoming Thuringian elections, said that the man shouted something "unintelligible", probably "in Russian or Ukrainian."
"The criminal was shouting something incomprehensible, probably his words were somehow connected with the war on Ukraine," Quasebart said.
This assumption was confirmed by another representative of the Sarah Wagenknecht Union, Sven Kunzel, who was near the stage at the time of the attack. According to media reports, Kunzel heard a man shouting "Ukraine!" during the attack.
"The look of shock was written all over Sarah's face," Kunzel said.
Elections to the Land Parliament of Thuringia will be held next Sunday, September 1. According to preliminary polls published on the eve, the Sarah Wagenknecht Union can count on the support of about 18.4% of voters in the eastern federal state. Thus, the pro-Russian party may become the third most powerful faction in the Landtag of Thuringia.