Merz calls state election results in Germany a historic defeat for his party

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has won the state election in Saxony-Anhalt, taking 43.8% of the vote. That's according to the weekly Die Zeit, citing German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The chancellor's own Christian Democratic Union (CDU) came in with just 17.2% — far behind its rivals.

It's worth noting that Saxony-Anhalt's state intelligence agency has officially classified the AfD as a proven extremist organisation since 2023.

The chancellor's reaction

Merz described the outcome as "the heaviest election defeat in decades." According to him, no one in the party had expected such a result. "We are all deeply shocked," the chancellor admitted, adding that the election results must nonetheless be accepted, since "that's how our democracy works."

In Merz's view, Sunday's vote has changed the situation not just in one state, but across Germany as a whole.

Searching for the causes

According to the weekly Focus, the chancellor is asking himself how right-wing populism managed to gain such strength in the country. "How could we let right-wing populism grow this powerful?" Merz was quoted as saying, adding that he is looking for the reasons behind what happened — including in his own government's actions.

Die Zeit reports that the chancellor said Germany needs sweeping reforms, and that citizens need to be better informed about what they entail. As Merz put it, this is "about the future of our country and the chances of our children and grandchildren."

Source: novinky.cz