AfD calls Merz 'a burden on Germany,' sets 40% approval target ahead of 2029 federal election

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a CDU federal executive committee meeting at the Konrad Adenauer House in Berlin on Monday (local time). [AP]
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a CDU federal executive committee meeting at the Konrad Adenauer House in Berlin on Monday (local time). [AP]

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called the result of the Saxony-Anhalt state election, in which the far-right Alternative for Germany swept to a commanding victory, "the most serious defeat in decades" and said he was "deeply shocked."

Speaking at a news conference Monday (local time), Merz said he had not anticipated the scale of the loss. "Starting from yesterday, change has come — not just in Saxony-Anhalt but across all of Germany," he said. He partly acknowledged analysis that recent reform efforts, including a push to raise the retirement age, had cost his party votes, saying, "We — myself included — must work to embrace a wider range of perspectives and communicate more deeply."

He drew a firm line, however, against calls from some quarters that he bear personal responsibility and resign. "Giving up is not an option for me. My responsibility is to open up opportunities for the next generation," he said.

Merz, who has ranked last in favorability among 20 major politicians in recent polling, had previously indicated his intention to seek re-election in the 2029 federal election. Asked whether the election result had changed his thinking, he said, "I am weighing many things, but I am not thinking about the 2029 general election right now — I am thinking about how we can achieve political success together again."

The center-right Christian Democratic Union, which Merz leads, won just 17.2 percent of the vote in the Saxony-Anhalt state election on Monday, securing 15 of the legislature's 83 seats. That represented a drop of 19.9 percentage points and 25 seats compared with the election five years ago.

The shockwaves within and beyond the CDU have been considerable. Rumors are circulating that some CDU members of the Saxony-Anhalt state legislature may back AfD premier candidate Ulrich Siegmund during coalition talks. Cracks within the party had already appeared last month, when it emerged that a CDU-affiliated politician active in Saxony-Anhalt had donated 10,000 euros ($11,600) to the AfD.

The AfD, which won 43.8 percent of the vote, immediately declared its ambition to take power at the federal level in the next general election. AfD co-leader Alice Weidel told a news conference that day, "There has never been a chancellor as unpopular as Merz. He has become a great burden on Germany's progress."

Weidel said the CDU and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union, could never win a federal election again. "That is a fact," she said, adding that the AfD's goal was to widen the gap with the CDU-CSU bloc as quickly as possible and push its approval rating to at least 40 percent ahead of the next election.

A survey by the polling firm INSA released Saturday showed the AfD leading nationally with 28 percent support, ahead of the CDU-CSU alliance at 20 percent — a margin outside the margin of error.

Merz and the ruling CDU-CSU alliance face another test on Sept. 20, when state elections are held in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the AfD leads with 35 percent support, ahead of the Social Democratic Party at 32 percent, the Left Party at 11 percent and the CDU-CSU alliance at 8 percent. Even in Berlin, traditionally a stronghold for progressive parties, the AfD has climbed to 18 percent, closing in on the CDU-CSU alliance at 20 percent and the Left Party at 19 percent.


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