Bayern-SPD under pressure: Endres warns of AfD normalization in the election campaign!

Bayern-SPD under pressure: Endres warns of AfD normalization in the election campaign!

Germering, Deutschland - On February 8, 2025, a political landscape in Germany unfolds, which is increasingly shaped by intensive debates on migration policy. These discussions not only have an eye on the Bundestag election, but also the belonging of the established parties to the extreme positions of the AfD (alternative for Germany).

Ronja Endres, the head of the Bayern-SPD, commented concerns about developments, especially since CDU candidate for chancellor Friedrich Merz, has called for an tightening of asylum policy. It describes that the SPD is electrified by these announcements, but also fears a "paradigm shift" that could normalize the AfD. At the same time, Bayern-SPD registers a motivation boost of its campaigners, which led to an increase in membership by 160 in just four days.

political reactions and effects

The debate was disguised on Wednesday in the Bundestag by voting on a five-point plan presented by Merz to tighten the immigration system. This project was accepted with 348 to 345 votes, whereby the support of CDU/CSU, AfD and FDP was decisive. This development is celebrated by the AfD as a historical moment and is concerned that the separation between established parties and the AfD is increasingly dissolved, which is primarily criticized because the Union tends to the right in immigration policy. Endres feels the discussion about asylum as a partly missing debate in the SPD, which is happy to deal with migration.

Saskia Esken, the co-chair of the Bundes-SPD, sharply criticized Merz that he should not move into the Chancellery. Esken also pointed out another critical statement by Horst Seehofer, who described migration as "the mother of all problems", and warned of an increasing climate against migrants.

election forecasts and party positions

This voltage is also reflected in the election surveys: The SPD has slipped into the settlement in the last elections, with 8.4 percent in the state election 2023 and 10 percent in the last BR survey on the upcoming Bundestag election. In contrast, the CDU/CSU leads in the surveys, while the AfD remains constant in second place. Migration, asylum and security issues are the focus of these election statements.

The different parties are clearly positioned in migration policy. While the SPD relies on the success of ordered migration and rejects border closures, the Union strives to stop illegal migration and enable rejections at the limits. The AfD, on the other hand, calls for an end of uncontrolled immigration with a comprehensive return offensive.

In the political arena, the debate is still intensively managed and observed, not least by the neighboring countries of Germany, which are concerned about compliance with European laws. The situation is tense and the coming weeks promise to become decisive for the future of German politics.