Merz says AfD win in Saxony-Anhalt shakes CDU to its core
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the far-right AfD's victory in Saxony-Anhalt's state election has shaken his CDU party to its foundations, and he acknowledged that neither he nor the federal government can continue as before. The AfD won 43.8 percent of the vote on Sunday, while the CDU collapsed to 17.2 percent, according to preliminary results. Merz called a crisis meeting on Monday, saying the party failed to connect emotionally with voters and that the AfD aims for the CDU's complete destruction. Merz ruled out cooperation with the AfD and rejected resignation, though he admitted this is the CDU's heaviest defeat in decades. Two more state elections follow in two weeks, with the AfD leading polls in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.