German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has described the CDU's result in the regional elections in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern as a "heavy blow", where his party failed to pass the 5 percent electoral threshold and remained outside the state parliament.
After the CDU leadership meeting in Berlin, Merz accepted the weight of the result, but ruled out the possibility of resigning from the position of chancellor or the party leadership.
“This is a heavy blow,” Merz declared, adding that the results and the reasons behind them “go far beyond my person.” According to him, Germany is experiencing a profound transformation of the political system, a process that, according to the chancellor, is also occurring in other countries.
In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the AfD came out on top with 38.2 percent of the vote, followed by the SPD with 35.5 percent. Merz's CDU received only 4.9 percent, falling below the 5 percent threshold and losing representation in the state parliament for the first time.
Merz also referred to the results in Berlin, where Die Linke came first with 25.7 percent, while the CDU came second with 18.8 percent and the AfD third with 16.3 percent.
Commenting on the results, the German chancellor said the rise of parties at the far ends of the political spectrum was changing the country's political landscape. He stressed that the CDU would analyze the results and draw lessons for the future.
Merz also thanked his coalition partner, the Social Democrats, for confirming that he would remain in government. He said the coalition must continue to work on reforms, while acknowledging that the government must respond to citizens' concerns about jobs, families, pensions and the healthcare system.
"We want to move the reform process forward, but we know that we owe people answers regarding their concerns and fears," Merz said.
The chancellor argued that the coalition government's task is to prepare Germany for the coming years in the face of these challenges. Despite the CDU's poor performance in regional elections, Merz declared that he would remain in office and take responsibility for the reform process.
The September 20 elections brought mixed results in the two states. In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the AfD came out on top, while in Berlin, Die Linke took the top spot. For the CDU, the result in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern marks one of the biggest electoral blows in its history.
