New Delhi: In a major political upset in Germany, exit polls on Sunday showed the far-left Die Linke taking the lead in Berlin, and the far-right AfD going ahead of all in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, giving Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) its worst election setback.
The elections had been closely watched all over the world because Merz’s government has been facing increasing criticism over rising living costs, pensions and other reforms.
Immigration was another major issue on which his government faced sharp attacks, both from public and opposition parties.
The exit polls results were indicative of the Germans’ rising fears over economic uncertainty In Saxony-Anhalt, 7 in 10 voters told pollsters their income was not going to enable them to make their both ends meet.
AfD also promised to revive the Nord Stream pipeline from Russia, which terminates in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, arguing that Russian gas would reduce energy costs
On the other hand far-Left Die Linke took advantage of Berlin’s housing crisis. Lead candidate Elif Eralp called rent “the biggest social problem”. He promised to nationalize ∼220,000 units owned by big corporate landlords and cut rents 20 per cent above average.
The East-West divide was also a factor. In eastern parts of Germany there was grievance of having been structurally left behind, with historical grievances and lower development.
AfD is projected to secure about 37-38 per cent, narrowly ahead of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), while Merz’s CDU was given only around 5 per cent, according to media reports. That would be its worst performance in a German state since the Second World War. On the other hand, AFD had already showed strong performance in Saxony-Anhalt, and now it had emerged as a force in another German state.
Far Left Die Linke was projected to lead with 25-26 per cent, but AfD also made gains in the capital in the exit polls.The CDU was on around 20 per cent.
Merz has described the results as a ” disaster” but expressed his resolve to carry on the path he has chosen.
He said he would go ahead with vigour on the programme of economic, tax and welfare reforms.
“I would even go so far as to say that these reforms are the antidote to the authoritarian poison that, with the fascination of authoritarianism, is penetrating ever deeper into our society,” media reports quoted him as saying.
Though it is unlikely that Sunday’s results would immediately force Merz to step downfrom office, but they have certainly deepened the leadership crisis that has been in the making.
—India News Stream
