Overview
- Boris Rhein told Bild am Sonntag on Sunday, September 27, 2026, that the CDU should restart the 'Stadtbild' debate that Chancellor Friedrich Merz began, arguing the issue must be discussed rather than declared taboo.
- Rhein defended Merz’s original wording as a prompt to address visible migration in public spaces and named specific problems to be tackled: migrants without permanent status, non-working newcomers using social benefits, and crime linked to some recent arrivals.
- The call follows a wave of strong AfD results in eastern state elections, including 38.2 percent in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and 43.8 percent in Sachsen-Anhalt, and an INSA poll that places the AfD at about 29 percent nationally and the CDU near 19 percent.
- Rhein framed the move as part of a bid to win back 'everyday' voters by clarifying party messaging on pocketbook issues and security, while also criticizing policy inconsistencies such as a fuel-price brake paired with planned consumer tax increases.
- Commentary is split across the press with some outlets warning that a frank migration debate could let the CDU reclaim the narrative and others warning it risks alienating centrists and normalizing language that benefits the AfD.