German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has expressed concern about the significant gains made by the far-right in two state elections at the weekend.
“It is a matter of defending democracy,” Scholz said on Tuesday at a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after a Franco-German cabinet meeting in Hamburg.
Support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party rose in the state of Hesse and in Bavaria, placing them second and third respectively. The centre-right Christian Democrats (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU) came out as winners.
Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD), on the other hand, saw its worst election results ever in both states. His two coalition partners, the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) and the Greens, also lost votes.
Asked whether he planned to change course on migration policy – following calls from the conservative opposition to do so – Scholz said: “Problems that are obvious have to be tackled.” But that had nothing to do with elections, he said.
He listed things his government is already doing to curb irregular migration and to recruit skilled workers at the same time.
The chancellor reiterated his view that the number of refugees coming to Germany was too high.
