Partial results from Sunday's regional elections in Germany's central state of Hesse indicate that Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) is set to remain the strongest political force at the local level. The CDU received 29.7% of the vote, while its national-level coalition partner, the Social Democrats (SPD), came in second with 20.2%. These figures represent a shift from the 2021 election results, where the CDU and SPD garnered 28.5% and 24% respectively.

The outcome is likely to provide some relief for Merz, whose party was narrowly defeated by the Greens in state elections in neighboring Baden-Württemberg just a week ago. In the Hesse elections, the Greens did not perform as strongly, losing their position as the third-strongest party to the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD). Preliminary results show the Greens with 14.4% of the vote, compared to 15.9% for the far-right AfD.

The AfD's result more than doubled its share from the last regional elections five years ago, when it received 6.9%, highlighting its continued surge in popularity across the country. Many observers are watching this rise with concern, viewing the AfD as a danger to democracy. The AfD's regional chapter in Hesse has been labeled a suspected extremist organization by state domestic intelligence, while the national AfD was classified as a confirmed right-wing extremist group last year for alleged racist and anti-democratic tendencies.

Sunday's vote determined the composition of local councils and city parliaments in Hesse, along with several mayoral posts. The state is home to Germany's financial hub, Frankfurt. A total of 4.7 million people were eligible to vote, including approximately 430,000 non-German citizens from other European Union member states. Voter turnout was 54.4%, surpassing the 50.4% recorded in 2021.

Source: www.dw.com