Frontrunner Meltz vows to lead in Europe, the final push

German rival political leaders will play their fight for the last and last vote, with a push that reflects the pivotal nature of Sunday’s election, not just for their country but for the whole of Europe.

Conservative frontrunner Friedrich Merz told supporters that under his leadership, Germany will take responsibility in Europe and that Germany (AFD)’s far-right alternative will once again be entrusted to political margins. .

He ends the Christian Democrats’ campaign at a rally in Munich, but his rivals file a final appeal in a television “speed dating” program with voters.

For months, German politics has been paralyzed by the collapse of previous governments.

Now, it raises across Europe that this vote will bring some certainty to the EU’s biggest democracy and its biggest economy.

There’s nothing to change overnight. You cannot govern without forming a union. That will take several weeks.

Reviving the economy is one of two major issues in the campaign. The other is migration and safety that drives German politicians through a series of deadly attacks since May 2024.

The cities of Mannheim, Solingen, Magdeburg, Asafenburg and Munich all suffer from terrible attacks.

All alleged attackers were immigrants, and the AFD under Alice Weidel has advanced to about 20% in the poll with nationalist anti-immigration messages.

She has appealed to young voters on social media, and is far ahead of the race at Tiktok, with 866,000 followers. She is also supported by support from both billionaire Elon Musk and US Vice President JD Vance, who has been accused of interfering in the German campaign.

The AFD talks about securing German borders that have come illegally and committing crimes and deporting migrants. However, she uses the term “remigration,” which is also linked to mass deportation.

Hundreds of people opposed the rise of the far right in Sorlingen, where Syrians were accused of stabbing three people last August, on Friday night.

“We have many friends who grew up in Germany where our parents didn’t,” said the 35-year-old, who was called Natalie.

A man called Jocchen held up a sign that read, “Never Again Is Now!”

The protest has led to a greater presence of police, and a police union spokesman said Friday there is a risk of attacks aimed at destabilizing democracy.

All mainstream parties exclude government cooperation with AFD, but if it exceeds 20%, the number of seats in a 630-seat parliament could double to 150.

Merz’s most likely partner is, perhaps not Scholz himself, but Prime Minister Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrat. The message from his centre left SPD as the final day of the campaign was that all votes were important and if the Germans wanted a strong government, they would need a strong SPD.

While the Social Democrats suffer third most in the poll, Scholz has pinned hopes to one among five undecided voters who could make a big difference.

Friedrich Merz was in a relaxed and confident mood when he appeared on stage this week in front of supporters in the high-tech hub city of Darmstadt near Frankfurt. But his message was harsh as he directed his thoughts on President Donald Trump.

With one hand and the other holding the microphone in his pocket, he spoke of an unprecedented era and “a structural change at the heart of power in the world.”

“The political order is falling apart. What we’ve become accustomed to for decades is broken.” He says that America will join Germany in the summer to celebrate its 70th anniversary of its NATO membership. I wasn’t even sure if that was the case.

He denounced the resignation government for not taking a leading role on the international stage.

“The German government and the Prime Minister will eventually have to take on a leading role in Europe again. If I was elected, I would spend a significant portion of my time maintaining this European Union together. Masu.”

The Germans have almost nightly opportunities to watch their political leaders break down big issues in television debates.

In preparation for the vote, she met Vice President JD Vance. He raised a “firewall” against the far right and denounced German politicians for ignoring “voters’ will.”

Its firewall – German brand Mauer – has grown stronger since the end of the war, but Merz himself was accused of breaking it in a migration motion last month when he relied on AFD support.

He has been facing demonstrations ever since, and there have been noisy protests when he visited Darmstadt.

PhD student Annika, 29, held the Hertz Stadt Mertz Banner in place of Mertz. “He says he won’t do anything with the far-right AFD, but his actions contradict what he says. I don’t trust him at all.”

Meltz appeared to have been stabbed by the protest, trying to reassure voters that he “tolerance, minority government (having AFD), nothing at all.”