PRETORIA, Feb 6 (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday that Wednesday – when a state premier was elected with support from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) and her conservatives – was a bad day for democracy and the outcome needed to be undone.
“This event is inexcusable and so the result must be reversed,” Merkel told a news conference during a visit to South Africa.
The election of Thomas Kemmerich, a little-known liberal Free Democrat (FDP) in the eastern state of Thuringia, was the first in which a state premier won with the support of the AfD, shattering the post-war consensus among established parties of shunning the far right. (Reporting by Andreas Rinke Writing by Michelle Martin Editing by Paul Carrel)