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Merz Drops “Firewall” Term After CDU Breach

8/24/2026

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Story summary
  • German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has stopped using the term “firewall” to describe the CDU’s stance toward the AfD.
  • The CDU pledged a “firewall” against the AfD when Merz became party leader in 2021.
  • In January 2025 the CDU accepted AfD support to reject asylum seekers, breaching its firewall.
  • Alliance Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) says excluding the AfD is undemocratic.
  • BSW says it could support an AfD-led Saxony-Anhalt government after the September 6 election.