His comments come just days after a landslide victory for the AfD in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt in which the party just fell short of winning an absolute parliamentary majority.
“Remigration” is a far-right concept that can range from deporting people without legal status to the mass removal of immigrants and their descendants. The anti-immigrant AfD had dedicated an entire chapter to “immigration and remigration” in its election program for Saxony-Anhalt.
Its lead candidate Ulrich Siegmund — who is also the state’s potential next premier — attended a notorious 2023 meeting at which party figures and far-right extremists discussed “remigration plans” that included the mass deportation of “non-assimilated” German citizens and sparked nationwide protests.
Merz’s comments constitute the harshest condemnation yet of the AfD’s policies and come as the chancellor himself is facing mounting questions over his ability to lead Germany’s weakened coalition government. His dismal approval ratings helped fuel the AfD’s victory in Saxony-Anhalt on Sunday — and contributed to his party losing over half of its support.
Following the election, Merz and his center-right conservatives are searching for a new narrative in their fight against the far right. The AfD, now the most popular party in national polls, has vowed to destroy Merz’s conservatives and seize power nationwide after the next national election, scheduled for 2029.
“You have failed to understand the message that voters in Saxony-Anhalt sent you last Sunday,” AfD national co-leader Alice Weidel, who spoke before Merz in the Bundestag, said. “That doesn’t really matter anyway, because your time is up. The people want a change in policy, and they will get it. In the next election, the people will give the AfD — that is, us, the Alternative for Germany — a clear mandate to govern.”