German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he was deeply shocked by the victory of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt, according to infohub.kz.
As reported by DW, the head of the German government commented on the success of the right-wing party in the regional elections. He said that both he personally and his political force, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), are extremely concerned about the election results. "This is the CDU's heaviest defeat in elections for many years, even decades. The recent state elections brought changes not only for Saxony-Anhalt but for all of Germany," the politician stressed.
Merz noted the need to draw lessons from his party's failure. "It is quite obvious that the CDU cannot simply continue with its previous agenda," he added.
At the same time, the Chancellor expressed confidence in the resilience of the German state despite the convincing victory of the far-right in one of the 16 federal states. He also stated his intention to defend the constitution and take measures in light of the seriousness of the situation.
The BILD newspaper quotes Merz as saying that the first "right-wing radical" state premier in the history of the Federal Republic could emerge. The current head of the government of Saxony-Anhalt, Sven Schulze from the CDU, conceded defeat and noted that "the CDU is moving into opposition because the party no longer has a mandate to form a government." Thus, the initiative to form a new cabinet passes to the victorious AfD.