The SPD parliamentary group leader, Matthias Miersch, has signaled the need for a course correction in the federal government’s reform policies after his party’s poor results in Berlin, and its decline in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania despite its chance of governing. “At the moment, these reforms are primarily identified with cuts,” Miersch said on Monday on ARD’s “Morgenmagazin” program. According to him, it is not yet clear to the citizens “what positive changes” these reforms will bring. With this statement, Miersch implied that the government should communicate the benefits of the reforms better and link them more clearly to concrete improvements for citizens, instead of them being perceived primarily as austerity measures.
Immediately after the elections in the two states, Chancellor Friedrich Merz appeared before the cameras, he admitted that the CDU result “was a disaster,” but stressed that the government in Berlin would continue the course of reforms. “The answer must be to make our country ready and strong for the future.” He said that “I take on this responsibility because I want to take this country forward.”
It is unusual for a chancellor to make a direct statement on election night. Merz had summoned the CDU leadership to party headquarters for the evening of the election. After the CDU’s heavy defeat in the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt two weeks earlier, criticism of Merz had become increasingly strong even within the party itself. However, four days before the election, the eight powerful state premiers from the CDU had come to the chancellor’s defense with a joint statement, giving open support to his policies and leadership. Merz spoke firmly in front of the cameras. “What needs to be done now requires courage, steadfastness and patience. I will show these qualities as chairman of the CDU and, above all, as federal chancellor of our country.”
AfD wins in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, SPD may govern
The AfD has won the state parliament elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, but the second-placed SPD can continue to govern in the federal state because no party will form a coalition with the AfD. According to preliminary results, the AfD has received 38,2 percent of the vote. The party, led by the state’s candidate for prime minister, Leif-Erik Holm, and the main candidate Enrico Schult, has more than doubled its result from 2021, when it received 16,7 percent of the vote.
The SPD of state premier Manuela Schwesig achieved a surprisingly strong result with 35,5 percent of the vote. Although the party suffered losses compared to the 2021 elections, when it received 39,6 percent, the relief within the SPD is great. In recent months, the party has managed to significantly narrow the considerable difference that the polls gave to the AfD, recovering a good part of the disadvantage against it.
CDU no longer in the state parliament of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
The result for the CDU is dramatic: with just 4,9 percent of the vote, it fails to pass the five percent threshold and, for the first time in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany, remains outside a state parliament. The leading candidate, Daniel Peters, recorded the worst result of a Christian Democratic party in German state elections since 1949. During the election campaign, the CDU not only faced a negative trend at the federal level, but also suffered from the strong polarization of the race, which focused mainly on the duel between Chancellor Manuela Schwesig and the AfD.
The Greens, led by front-runner Claudia Müller, have managed to re-enter the state parliament, receiving 5,7 percent of the vote. During the election campaign, they also relied on tactical votes from the left-wing electorate and promoted the creation of a red-red-green state government (SPD, Left and Greens).
The Left cheers in Berlin
In Berlin, the Left Party (Die Linke) is celebrating its victory: led by its main candidate Eralp, it has more than doubled its results and, for the first time, has emerged victorious in the elections to the Berlin House of Representatives (Abgeordnetenhaus). Candidate Elif Eralp won 25,7 percent of the vote, according to preliminary results. The 45-year-old of Turkish origin had focused her election campaign entirely on the issue of housing. Eralp often keeps her most important electoral issue close to her symbolically: she wears a gold pendant around her neck with the inscription “Mietendeckel” (rent ceiling), which has become a symbol of her commitment to limiting rent increases.
The ruling parties, the CDU and the SPD, have suffered significant losses. The current coalition between the CDU and the SPD in the Red City Hall (Rotes Rathaus) can no longer govern. The CDU, with its leading candidate Stefan Evers, suffered significant losses. With only 18,8 percent of the vote, it came in second place, while in the 2023 elections it had reached 28,2 percent.