Setback
for Merz: AfD ties with CDU/CSU in poll for first time
An election
poster of the far-right AfD party, right, is displayed on a lamppost in front
of the CDU's giant election poster at the party headquarters in Berlin,
Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 29.
Copyright
Michael Sohn/Copyright 2025 The AP. All rights reserved
By Nela
Heidner
Published on
05/04/2025 - 18:04 GMT+2•Updated 18:29
In the midst
of its coalition negotiations, the CDU/CSU has lost six percentage points.
The head of
the Institute for New Social Answers (INSA) Hermann Binkert calls this a
"loss of support that has never been seen before in the period between the
Bundestag elections and the formation of a government".
According to
the Sunday poll conducted by the Insa opinion research institute for the Bild
newspaper, 24 per cent of voters surveyed would vote for the CDU/CSU and 24 per
cent for the AfD.
For the AfD,
this represents an increase of one percentage point compared to the last poll,
marking its best result to date. By contrast, the CDU/CSU, led by the likely
next Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz, lost two percentage points.
The CDU and
CSU secured victory in the Bundestag election on 23 February with 28.5 per cent
of the second votes, while the AfD came second with 20.8 per cent.
Compared to
the election, the CDU/CSU has lost a full 4.5 points.
The SPD,
which is expected to be a coalition partner in the near future, remains
unchanged at 16 per cent in the new Insa poll. As a result, the SPD would not
have a majority in parliament on its own.
The Greens
stand at 11 per cent (-1), as does the Left Party (+1). All other parties
continue to fall short of the five per cent threshold.
A total of
1,206 people participated in the survey between 31 March and 4 April. According
to Insa, the maximum statistical margin of error is 2.9 percentage points.
Meanwhile,
according to German news website t-online, the Bundestag session scheduled for
next week has been cancelled at the request of the CDU/CSU and SPD. A decision
against which the foreseeable opposition parties Left, Greens and AfD are
protesting.
Bundestag
not convened next week as planned
The AfD
interprets this move as an expression of fear, suggesting that the Union is
worried about being overshadowed by the right-wing party. According to Bernd
Baumann, Parliamentary Secretary of the AfD parliamentary group, the AfD plans
to immediately present "all the demands that the CDU/CSU promised during
the election campaign" in the Bundestag, as he explained in a video on the
news platform X.
The Greens
criticise this as "a hanging game, especially in these times," while
the Left Party calls it an affront. They argue that there are enough important
topics—such as Trump’s customs policy—that require dialogue: "During
coalition negotiations, there should be political silence, and the opposition
should not disturb—that is an absurdity."
The new
Bundestag convened for its first session on 25 March. Prior to this, the old
Bundestag had approved extensive debt for infrastructure and defence with the
required two-thirds majority. In addition to the CDU/CSU and SPD, the Greens
also voted in favour of the special fund.
In the new
Bundestag, these parties would not have had the necessary majority to pass such
a resolution.
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário