Sven Schulze avoids meeting AfD winner Ulrich Siegmund in ZDF studio

Inside CDU, a ZDF documentary on the Union’s campaign in Saxony-Anhalt, includes a scene from election night where former Minister President Sven Schulze entered the studio and discovered AfD victor Ulrich Siegmund still on site. A producer remarked that Schulze did not want to meet him, and staff arranged for Schulze to move to a behind-the-scenes waiting area, explicitly away from the press. Dialogue among the crew confirms the avoidance was deliberate.

The program also examines how CDU members are grappling with the question of whether to keep the party’s historic refusal to cooperate with the AfD, given the latter’s high vote share. Additional clips show Schulze’s limited knowledge of the Saxony-Anhalt team during a visit to the party’s Berlin headquarters. After the election, the CDU fell to a low share of the vote and Siegmund’s party became the strongest force, prompting Schulze to step down from his state leadership role.