Schleswig-Holstein premier calls AfD unpatriotic, aims to keep party out of state parliament

Election context

Schleswig-Holstein heads to the polls on 18 April 2026. The AfD sat in the Kiel Landtag from 2017 to 2022 but failed to clear the 5% threshold in the last election, winning just 4.4% of the vote. An April 2026 Infratest dimap poll for NDR put the party at 15%, raising the prospect of its return.

Günther's confidence

Minister President Daniel Günther (CDU) told dpa he still believes a parliament without radical forces is achievable. "That remains the goal. I am proud to live in a state where we have no radical forces in the Landtag," he said. He argued that the respectful political culture in Schleswig-Holstein, including cooperation within the previous Jamaica and current black-green coalitions, builds trust and helped keep the AfD out last time.

Attack on the AfD

Günther sharpened his rhetoric, calling the AfD unpatriotic.

The AfD proves every day anew that it has everything in mind, but nothing good for Germany. This party constantly badmouths our country and wants to divide our society.

He warned that its policies would slow the economy, endanger jobs, and make life more expensive. All parties lost voters to the AfD in recent elections, he noted, and it can no longer simply be ignored.

Firewall terminology

The CDU state chairman distanced himself from the "firewall" debate within his party.

I could never do much with the term. It is misleading and makes it easy for the AfD to tell the fairy tale that they are being excluded.

Instead, he argued for outright rejection: anyone who considers themselves Christian democratic or liberal-conservative must never cooperate with a right-wing extremist party, not only for historical reasons but because there are no commonalities with a party that opposes Europe, NATO, and everything built by Adenauer, Kohl, and Merkel.