Merz: Both major people’s parties are seriously under threat

Chancellor Friedrich Merz says Germany’s two major traditional parties are in serious danger after the AfD’s strong result in Saxony-Anhalt.

Asked in Berlin whether the election showed the parties were slipping away or even facing their end, Merz said he could not answer conclusively. “I only see that the two major people’s parties we once had are seriously under threat. That has been true of the SPD for longer, but it is true of us as well,” he said.

Merz, who also leads the CDU, said the party must remain rooted across the population and win support across society. The CDU’s Union bloc and the SPD govern together at the federal level.

According to preliminary results from Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD more than doubled its vote share to 43.8%. The CDU fell to 17.2%, down from 37.1%, marking its worst result in a state election in the region. The SPD edged up to 9.3% from 8.4%, but remained at a low level.

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I only see that the two major people’s parties we once had are seriously under threat. That has been true of the SPD for longer, but it is true of us as well.