Merz Warns Jews Are ‘No Longer Safe in Germany’ After His Party Is Trounced in Elections

Chancellor Friedrich Merz is warning of growing antisemitism in Germany — and specifically Berlin — after his party lost two key elections Sunday to a far-right party and a far-left party. “The fact that Jewish people are no longer safe in Germany is the heaviest burden of recent years,” Mr. Merz said on Monday after his Christian Democratic Union lost a regional election in Berlin and was trounced in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a rural region in the formally communist East Germany.“This is something that should deeply concern all democratic parties in Germany,” Mr. Merz added.Berlin has Germany’s largest Jewish population with an estimated 40,000 residents and relations between Jews and the party that won Sunday’s election, Die Linke, or the Left Party, have been strained.There are longstanding concerns about an antisemitic wing in the party. The Berlin wing of the party failed to provide a strong position on antisemitism after the October 7 attack. In March, the Lower Saxony branch of the party passed a resolution condemning Israel. In August, a rapper performing at a Left Party rally in Berlin sang his song “Stop the Genocide” that included lyrics like “Death to the IDF.”The party’s lead candidate, Elif Eralp, condemned the performance and said she was committed to protect Jewish life if she, as expected, becomes the mayor. Her party is planning to hold talks with the Social Democratic Party and the Greens in an effort to form a governing coalition.“One of the most important results from this weekend is that the Left can win. There is another way. We can stop the drift to the right. Berlin is sending the signal not only to Germany but also internationally,” the national leader of Germany’s Left Party, Ines Schwerdtner, said on Monday.The president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, an umbrella organization for Jews across the country, Josef Schuster, said the Berlin branch of the party “cannot be entrusted with government responsibility.”The far-right Alternative for Germany party came in third Sunday in Berlin but cruised to victory in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Mr. Merz’s Christian Democratic Union took less than 5 percent of the vote in that state, making it the first time the party has failed to win seats in a state legislature.The AfD’s national leader, Alice Weidel, said the victory shows Germans want change. “It clearly shows that we have replaced the CDU as the people’s party,” Ms. Weidel said. The Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania win is the second time AfD has dominated a state election this month. It took the largest share of seats in Saxony-Anhalt but AfD has not been able to form a government because other parties have refused to work with the party.Mr. Merz on Monday reiterated his plan to remain as chancellor. “The governing coalition will remain in place to safeguard Germany’s democratic future,” Mr. Merz said.Mr. Merz is putting on a confident front but he still faces opposition inside his own party. His approval ratings are at a record low as Germans blame him for inflation, a severe pension crisis, and industrial struggles. The chancellor’s July plan to raise Germany’s retirement age to 67 was greeted with anger by powerful labor unions. In another blow to Mr. Merz, Volkswagen this month, announced a restructuring plan that could eliminate an additional 50,000 jobs, affecting about 15 percent of the carmaker’s total workforce.The AfD leads in national opinion polls but national elections are not scheduled for more than two years.

Merz Warns Jews Are ‘No Longer Safe in Germany’ After His Party Is Trounced in Elections

Merz Warns Jews Are ‘No Longer Safe in Germany’ After His Party Is Trounced in Elections

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