Friedrich Merz calls AfD remigration ethnic cleansing after Saxony-Anhalt election loss

Parliamentary confrontation after regional vote

On 9 September 2026, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Alternative for Germany (AfD) co-leader Alice Weidel engaged in a direct confrontation during the general budget debate in the Bundestag. The session followed state elections on 6 September in Saxony-Anhalt, where the AfD secured almost 44% of the vote, finishing three seats short of an absolute majority. The vote saw the CDU share halved, leading Weidel to claim that the CDU-SPD federal coalition had lost its mandate. Weidel told CDU lawmakers to look at their neighbouring seats, asserting that half of them would not return after the next federal election. Merz rejected suggestions of his resignation, defended his administration, and reproached the AfD for a lack of budgetary and governing experience.

Clash over remigration and economic fallout

Merz directed sharp criticism at the AfD platform on migration, arguing that its remigration proposals conflicted with the German Basic Law and would cause practical collapse across vital industries. The Chancellor noted that one in six workers in skilled trades holds a foreign passport, explaining that deporting foreign personnel would leave hospitals, nursing homes, and restaurants unable to operate. While emphasizing that the government supports the lawful deportation of irregular migrants, Merz separated official policy from the AfD program.

If what is being advocated here, namely 'remigration', were to become reality, it would be nothing other than a synonym for ethnic cleansing based on origin and skin colour.

AfD leaders rejected Merz's characterisation of their platform. Lawmaker Bernd Baumann stated that the party advocates solely for the consistent, lawful deportation of foreigners required to leave Germany, calling the accusation of ethnic cleansing an attempt to sustain a political firewall. In response to Weidel questioning the presence of rejected asylum seekers in Germany, Social Democratic Party (SPD) spokesperson Matthias Miersch held up a copy of the Basic Law, stating that the legal basis for their residency is established in constitutional text that the AfD had neglected to read.

Foreign policy and security divisions

Security policy and international alliances formed a central dispute during the parliamentary debate. Merz described the AfD as a destructive force that aligns with Moscow, accusing the party of reversing the roles of victim and perpetrator in the war against Ukraine. The Chancellor pointed to Russian hybrid operations against Germany, referencing an August 2026 planned drone incident at a German airport. Weidel countered by accusing the federal administration of escalating war rhetoric at a time when the United States sought diplomatic solutions.

The citizens of Saxony-Anhalt have made it clear -- expressing themselves through the sovereign vote of democracy -- that the black-red government is ending.

Electoral shifts and institutional reactions

The Bundestag clash occurred as political parties addressed the outcome in Saxony-Anhalt, where the regional AfD branch is classified as right-wing extremist by domestic intelligence. The party campaigned on accelerating deportations of rejected asylum applicants, incentivising voluntary departure, and teaching children of refugees in segregated classes. US President Donald Trump commented on the result, calling it a significant night for populists and attributing it to immigration rules. Federal polling cited during the debate showed the AfD leading nationally with 28% of voting intentions, compared to 21% for the CDU. Following the debate, state interior ministers convened to discuss security matters while regional factions examined government options in Magdeburg.