Friedrich Merz faces protests in Kühlungsborn and warns against AfD victory in Quedlinburg

Baltic coast campaign stop

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz traveled to eastern Germany on Monday, 31 August 2026, to support regional Christian Democratic Union (CDU) campaigns ahead of state elections in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Saxony-Anhalt. The tour began in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern with a private meeting alongside local business figures in Rostock before moving to the Baltic resort town of Kühlungsborn. Merz appeared alongside regional CDU lead candidate Daniel Peters and Chancellery Minister of State Philipp Amthor at a party stand outside the restaurant Kepplers Fisch on the promenade. The state branch built its campaign around the fish roll, using the slogan that the best part is in the middle, and pointed to the 40 million fish rolls sold annually across more than 800 retail outlets in the state.

The fish roll is in itself also an economic force for Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

Protests and local resistance

During the stop, restaurant operator Roberto Keppler detailed the difficulties facing regional fisheries, including European Union catch quotas. Merz sampled a sherry Bismarck herring roll with onions and salad, commending the dish and arguing that the state missed growth opportunities when the Social Democrats formed a coalition with the Left party five years earlier.

Then the state would certainly be further ahead today.

The visit drew visible pushback from passersby along the cordoned promenade. Demonstrators whistled and shouted insults at Merz, calling him a warmonger, Pinocchio, and demanding his resignation, though some bystanders urged decorum. A planned television statement was subsequently cancelled without public explanation from party organizers. Kühlungsborn had previously seen internal strife in spring 2025, when more than 20 members left the local CDU branch over disagreements with Merz. A national survey by Infratest dimap measured Merz's job approval at 14%, the lowest figure recorded for a sitting chancellor in that poll series.

Economic warnings in Quedlinburg

Later on Monday evening, Merz traveled south to Quedlinburg in Saxony-Anhalt, appearing alongside Minister-President Sven Schulze in the candidate's birthplace. The visit to the 1,000-year-old town, known for its more than 2,000 timber-framed houses, was guarded by police cordons around the collegiate church on the Stiftsberg. Merz addressed the potential economic impact of an Alternative for Germany (AfD) victory, warning that foreign businesses would reconsider future projects if a right-wing populist party gained an absolute majority.

Saxony-Anhalt must not become an experimentation ground for angry citizens.

Diverging fortunes in the polls

The campaign visits precede state parliament votes separated by two weeks. Saxony-Anhalt votes on Sunday, 6 September 2026, while Mecklenburg-Vorpommern heads to the polls on 20 September 2026. In Saxony-Anhalt, current polling places the AfD near 40%, with the CDU trailing at roughly 23%. Merz referenced the 2021 state election, in which the CDU outperformed close pre-election forecasts to finish with 37.1% against 20.8% for the AfD.

In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the CDU is polling near 10%, putting the party at risk of falling into single digits. State polling there is dominated by a contest between Minister-President Manuela Schwesig of the SPD and Leif-Erik Holm of the AfD, leaving the CDU with no clear route into government.