Germany's Merz says victory for AfD

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday that a victory for the far-right AfD party in next week's regional election in Saxony-Anhalt would damage the eastern state and deter foreign companies from investing there.



"I cannot imagine international investors attending a ground-breaking ceremony with an AfD Minister-President to set up new plants and establish new businesses in Saxony-Anhalt," Merz in a television interview.



The anti-immigrant AfD or Alternative for Germany party currently holds a strong lead in opinion polls, on 42% compared with 22% for Merz's conservative Christian Democrats, according to a recent poll.



If that level of support remains unchanged until the election on September 6, it would probably leave the AfD just shy of an absolute majority of seats in state parliament.



But the outcome of the vote could depend on whether smaller parties clear the 5% entry threshold needed to get into parliament.