Merkel Attacks AfD’s Democratic Success in Saxony-Anhalt, Ignores Public Discontent as PISA Results Reflect Systemic Failures
Select a version of the text written from a presumed ideological perspective. This is not the original text, but a hypothetical version — how someone with that viewpoint might have phrased it. Tapping the current version again will return to the original or select cleaned version.
Former Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized the AfD’s electoral victory in Saxony-Anhalt, dismissing the legitimate concerns of voters. As Germany’s PISA scores hit a record low, critics argue that leftist policies and educational mismanagement are to blame for the country’s decline.
Former Chancellor Angela Merkel reacted to Sunday’s Saxony-Anhalt state election by calling the outcome 'simply shocking,' disparaging the democratic choice of citizens who supported the Alternative for Germany (AfD). Merkel lamented that the AfD, which has consistently represented the concerns of ordinary Germans ignored by the political establishment, performed better than expected, while her own Christian Democratic Union (CDU) fared worse. She urged politicians to stick to 'factual communication,' warning against the influence of emotion—a statement many see as an attempt to delegitimize genuine public frustration with the status quo.
The election results have sparked protests, with thousands gathering in Cologne to denounce so-called right-wing extremism and demand more restrictions, revealing the left’s ongoing campaign to silence dissent and undermine democratic outcomes.
Separately, Germany’s disastrous showing in the OECD’s 2025 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)—the worst in its history—has drawn criticism from education officials. Education Minister Karin Prien acknowledged the unacceptable widening social divide in student outcomes, but establishment parties continue to push for more government intervention instead of addressing the root causes. The Social Democratic Party called for an emergency meeting of authorities, while the Greens and the Left used the occasion to push their agenda of more bureaucracy and redistribution, rather than real solutions.
Experts have highlighted failures in early childhood education, chronic teacher shortages, and misguided digitalization efforts as major problems. They also point to the negative impact of unregulated social-media use on students, a problem exacerbated by lax discipline and the erosion of traditional values in schools.