Overview
- The Bundestag Generaldebatte on Wednesday featured a heated clash in which Chancellor Friedrich Merz called the AfD “a destructive force” and said the party’s use of “Remigration” equated to ethnic cleansing while AfD MPs repeatedly interrupted and Bundestag President Julia Klöckner threatened ejections.
- The AfD won about 43.8 percent in the Saxony‑Anhalt state vote, more than doubling its 2021 share, but it fell short of an absolute majority and faces refusals from CDU, SPD, Greens and Linke to enter coalition talks.
- Polling and campaign events show the AfD riding that momentum into the Sept. 20 votes: In Mecklenburg‑Vorpommern the party leads by a narrow margin in recent surveys and the first TV duel between SPD incumbent Manuela Schwesig and AfD challenger Leif‑Erik Holm was combative.
- The Berlin SPD campaign suffered a fresh shock after police searches at three locations linked to Spitzenkandidat Steffen Krach and confirmation of an investigation by the Staatsanwaltschaft Hannover, a development parties say could damage voter confidence during ongoing early voting.
- The AfD surge has intensified pressure inside the governing CDU‑SPD coalition, prompted CDU figures to propose a federal‑state review of legal options including a party‑ban study, and raised the prospect that results on Sept. 20 will shape leadership battles and coalition math in Berlin.