German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Alternative for Germany leader Alice Weidel exchanged sharp accusations in the Bundestag after the anti-immigration AfD secured a major result in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.
The AfD won almost 44% of the vote in the state election, while Merz’s conservative bloc received 17.2%, about half its previous support. The AfD fell three seats short of an outright majority, leaving uncertainty over whether it can form a state government.
Weidel, whose party is the main opposition force in the Bundestag, said the election showed that Merz’s coalition with the Social Democrats had failed. She said his conservatives had been „pulverised” and accused the government of pushing Germany towards bankruptcy.
Migration dispute dominates debate
Merz rejected Weidel’s assessment and said the AfD would not achieve an outright majority nationally. He called the party a „destructive force” and said it had damaged German interests through its backing of Russia.
The chancellor also focused on the AfD’s proposed „remigration” policy. He said one in six skilled workers in Germany had a migration background, arguing that the party’s approach would amount to „nothing other than an ethnic cleansing in the skilled trades based on skin colour and origin”.
Merz said his government recognised that some deportations were necessary, but distinguished between people contributing to Germany’s prosperity and those without permanent residency. He warned that the AfD’s plans would leave care homes, hospitals and restaurants unable to operate.
Weidel said mass migration had led to daily knife violence and attacks on trains and at stations. The parliamentary session was repeatedly interrupted by AfD lawmakers, prompting Bundestag President Julia Klöckner to warn that she could begin removing members from the chamber. „We are not on a football pitch,” she said.
Coalition question remains unresolved
The AfD has said it is open to cooperation with another party in Saxony-Anhalt, potentially the left-wing populist BSW, provided its candidate Ulrich Siegmund becomes state premier. A senior AfD figure in the state has also suggested Merz’s Christian Democrats could cooperate if they abandon the political „firewall” under which mainstream parties refuse to work with the far right.
No far-right party has taken power in any of Germany’s 16 states since World War Two. Merz has described the Saxony-Anhalt outcome as „seismic” and said it had changed Germany.
Source: BBC News
