Germany: CDU Conservatives Regroup in ‘final line’ for parliamentary elections

The conservatives of the Christian Democratic Union ( ) try to regroup at their conference against the background of the parliamentary elections in , betting on immigration , despite criticisms made by the approach to the far right on the issue. At a time when the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), under Friedrich Murch, appears to be walking towards a broad electoral victory on February 23, the outcry that has caused in recent days the flirtation with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) creates some uncertainty. CORVERSE A large crowd of 160,000 to 250,000 people protested yesterday (02.02,2025) in Berlin denouncing the conservatives’ decision to rely on the votes of the extreme right to pass two immigration laws in the German parliament. Friedrich Murch won the first but failed the second time on Friday getting out weakened by the venture. With these actions, the new powerful CDU man, who decided to turn to the right the party’s program after Angela Merkel left in 2021, broke a taboo that applies after the war in Germany, that is, none of the traditional political parties accepts any kind of alliance or cooperation with the extreme right. CORVERSE However, Friedrich Murch insists: “That wrong people vote for (legislative) texts does not make these texts wrong”. In the final line of the campaign, the CDU conference began today (03.02.2025) its work in Berlin and its main theme will be migration. The mass demonstrations The conventioners were admitted by dozens of protesters shouting “CDU Shame. ” “ Together we will stop the Nazis, ” wrote the placards. REUTERS/Christian Mang Tens of civil society organizations, among them Amnesty, Caritas and Oxfam, appealed to conservative MPs to “take their distances with rhetoric and demands that divide our society and turn people against each other.” The CDU will today adopt a list of 15 metres that will be applied “directly” in the event of an election victory. The CDU’s programming statements One of the axes of this programme is a “turn in asylum policy, ” with the application of continuous border controls, the expulsion of all foreigners, and asylum seekers, who appear at the border without documents and the detention indefinitely of illegal or dangerous foreigners. The CDU wants to review the reduction in time for granting citizenship from eight to five years , which was decided by the government of Olaf Scholtz. ‘The German passport is at the end of integration rather than at the beginning’ refers to the CDU programme. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse “We want a political change in Germany on the issue of security policy, immigration and the economy, ” says Friedrich Murch. A wide range of measures are intended for the German economy and include reducing VAT on focus, greater flexibility of working hours, tax exemption on overtime, reimbursement of diesel subsidies for agricultural vehicles, abolition of compulsory cash receipts. What the polls show The conservatives’ attack, after killing attacks committed by foreigners who shook public opinion, is a dangerous bet aimed at the electorate section, which tends towards or has already voted the far right. Friedrich Murch/REUTERS/Annegret Hilse The attack began at the time the CDU has reached its maximum limits or even begun to retreat to polls. The CDU brings together 29% to 30% of the voting intention, compared with 35% at the end of last year. At the same time, AfD is at 20% to 22% , ahead of Olaf Scholtz’s SPD (16%-17%) . For its part, the German extreme right is calling on Germans to vote on the Original rather than the copy on immigration , while the left warns, despite Friedrich Murch’s refusals, about the risk of the CDU’s alliance with AfD over Germany’s governance.