Malcolm Brabant:
The attacks have galvanized support for the anti-immigrant AfD, the Alternative for Germany Party.
“Now is the time for our security,” says leader Alice Weidel. “Now is the time for a new beginning.”
While the AfD has doubled its popularity since the last election, it’s expected to come second, but barred from joining the next governing coalition. All the opinion polls suggest that the center-right Christian Democrats, the CDU, will win the election and lead Germany’s next government. They have accused the outgoing left-leaning coalition of being soft on immigration.
The CDU is promising to restore law and order and make the country safe again. Unless there’s a major upset, Germany’s next chancellor will be Friedrich Merz, a pro-business lawyer. During a debate with Social Democrat rival Olaf Scholz, Merz warned of the consequences of failing to tackle migration on Germany’s flagging economy.
Friedrich Merz, Leader, Christian Democratic Union of Germany (through interpreter): Then we will finally slide into right-wing populism, and I am standing here to avoid exactly that. I will only sign a coalition agreement that includes a turnaround on migration and a turnaround on the economy.
