The chancellor\u2019s CDU is projected to suffer a drubbing in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and trail the Left Party in Berlin<\/p>\n
German regional elections could have major implications for Chancellor Friedrich Merz\u2019s political future, with exit polls projecting a crushing defeat for his Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and a weak showing in Berlin.
\nThe CDU was languishing at just 20% nationwide as of last weekend, according to an INSA \u2018Sunday Trend\u2019 poll. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) remained the country\u2019s most popular party, with 29% support. This comes despite pressure on the AfD from Germany\u2019s domestic security agency over its alleged \u2018extremist\u2019 tendencies and efforts by mainstream parties to keep it out of government.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Half of Germans expect Merz to be out by year-end \u2013 poll<\/p>\n
Merz himself has also faced widespread dissatisfaction, with 78% of respondents surveyed by INSA unhappy with his performance as chancellor.
\nThe CDU therefore entered Sunday\u2019s vote under considerable pressure, compounded by its electoral drubbing in Saxony-Anhalt earlier this month.<\/p>\n
First exit polls
\nThe Left Party (Die\u00a0Linke) is projected to\u00a0top the vote in\u00a0Berlin with 25.3% of the vote, according to exit polls. Its lead candidate, Elif Eralp, a first generation German of Turkish parentage, told cheering supporters on Sunday evening that \u201cfrom today on, we will change Berlin together.\u201d
\nMerz\u2019s CDU is projected to take 19.1%, while the AfD is in third place with 16.2%, according to DW.
\nIf the projections hold, the Left Party will be in pole position to lead Berlin\u2019s next government \u2013 potentially for the first time since German reunification in 1990.
\nIn Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the AfD is projected to finish first with 37.9% of the vote in an extraordinary turnaround. Party co-leader Tino Chrupalla said the result showed that the AfD \u201cclearly have the mandate to govern here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Merz\u2019s party hits new low in regional election \u2018disaster\u2019<\/p>\n
Merz\u2019s CDU, meanwhile, is projected to suffer another major setback, securing just 5% and barely clearing the threshold for entering the state parliament. The result would be the party\u2019s worst in any German state election since 1949. Merz has described\u00a0his party’s showing as a \u201cdisaster.\u201d
\nWho is voting for what?
\nIn Berlin, which is both a city and one of Germany\u2019s 16 federal states, approximately 2.5 million people are eligible to elect the House of Representatives, the local legislature.
\nVoters have cast two votes: one for a direct candidate in one of 78 constituencies and the other for a party\u2019s state or district list. The second determines the overall distribution of seats. The legislature normally has 130 lawmakers, although its size can increase through so-called \u2018balancing\u2019 seats.
\nPreliminary data suggest turnout in Berlin has surpassed that recorded in the previous regional election in February 2023.
\nIn Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, around 1.3 million people are eligible to elect the state parliament. They similarly voted for both a constituency candidate and a party list.
\nSunday\u2019s elections also marked the first time 16- and 17-year-olds had been allowed to vote in either contest.
\nThe rising cost of living has been among voters\u2019 biggest concerns. Some 67% of respondents in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and 56% in Berlin named it as their primary preoccupation in an Infratest Dimap poll conducted earlier this week. In Berlin, unaffordable housing also emerged as a major campaign issue.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
German state could face EU fund freeze after AfD win \u2013 media<\/p>\n
Why do the elections matter nationally?
\nSunday\u2019s votes came just two weeks after the AfD won another eastern state, Saxony-Anhalt, with 43.8%, while the CDU finished a distant second with 17.2%.
\nThat result intensified scrutiny of Merz\u2019s future as leader of the party.
\nTable.Briefings reported earlier this week that he planned to convene the CDU executive committee on Sunday and put the question of confidence to a test. ZDF has also reported that talk of replacing Merz has circulated within the party for months, although no clear successor has emerged.
\nReuters reported earlier this week, citing an anonymous government source, that the chancellor had canceled a planned trip to the UN General Assembly in New York to attend a special meeting in Berlin on Sunday.
\nA YouGov poll published on Thursday found that 48% of respondents expect Merz to be out of office by the end of the year.
\nMerz under pressure
\nMerz took\u00a0over in May 2025 promising sweeping economic reforms and a stronger German leadership role in Europe. His coalition government, which also includes the Social Democrats (SPD), has struggled to revitalize the country\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Germany shows where Europe is heading<\/p>\n
Germany endured three consecutive years of economic stagnation and recession before GDP grew 0.3% in the second quarter of 2026. German industry has faced mounting pressure from high energy costs following Berlin\u2019s move away from Russian oil and gas.
\nAt the same time, Merz has committed billions of euros to an ambitious rearmament program and continued military aid to Ukraine, while calling on Germans to work more.
\nThe regional results do not directly determine the composition of the federal government, but the CDU\u2019s projected showing \u2013 particularly its 5% result in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania \u2013 could intensify debate within the party over Merz\u2019s leadership and political strategy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The chancellor\u2019s CDU is projected to suffer a drubbing in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and trail the Left Party in Berlin German regional elections could have major implications for Chancellor Friedrich Merz\u2019s…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":38510,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38509","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t