German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called the results of Sunday’s state elections a “catastrophe” for the ruling CDU and said he would continue economic reforms. He also said he had no intention of stepping down as chancellor.
In the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, “Alternative for Germany” received 38.2% of the vote and won the election for the second time in a row. The CDU failed to clear the 5 percent threshold and, for the first time in the postwar era, will not be represented in the state parliament.
The Social Democratic Party of Germany, which governs the state, won 35.5% and, according to the source’s assessment, retains good chances of forming a coalition with the “Greens” and the “Left” party. In Saxony-Anhalt, another state in eastern Germany, two weeks ago the “AfD” received almost 44% and hopes to form a government, but in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania such a scenario looks less likely.
In Berlin, where the CDU currently heads the government, its support fell from 28.2% to less than 19%, while first place with 25.7% went to the “Left”, which advocates expropriating the property of housing companies that rent out apartments. Support for the “AfD” in the capital rose from 9% to more than 16%, and Carsten Brzeski, global head of macroeconomics at the Dutch bank ING, wrote that the results reflect the federal government’s rating, although they were not a referendum on structural reforms; Merz’s program includes raising the retirement age, cutting health insurance benefits, tightening the rules for obtaining sick leave, and developing infrastructure.
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