(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – With a federal election looming, the junior partner in Germany’s governing coalition is losing steam, according to a poll by Forsa released by Stern and RTL. 21 per cent of respondents would vote for the Social Democratic Party (SPD) in this year’s ballot, down three points since late May.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – With a federal election looming, the junior partner in Germany’s governing coalition is losing steam, according to a poll by Forsa released by Stern and RTL. 21 per cent of respondents would vote for the Social Democratic Party (SPD) in this year’s ballot, down three points since late May.
The Christian-Democratic Union (CDU) and its associate Bavarian Christian-Social Party (CSU) remain in first place with 35 per cent. The Free Democratic Party (FDP) is third with 15 per cent, followed by the Green Party (Grune) with 13 per cent, and the Left Party (Linke) with 11 per cent.
The next legislative ballot is scheduled for Sept. 27. The CDU-CSU alliance has said it would likely invite the pro-business FDP to form a new federal government. Together, the CDU, CSU and FDP garner the support of 50 per cent of respondents.
Official results from the September 2005 election to the Federal Diet gave the CDU and the CSU 226 seats, with the SPD a close second with 222 legislators. Neither of the two main parties was able to assemble a coalition government with their preferred partners. In November 2005, CDU leader Angela Merkel was sworn in as Germany’s first female head of government. The current administration includes members of the CDU, CSU and SPD.
In September 2008, SPD leader Kurt Beck tendered his resignation. The party chose transport, building and urban affairs minister Franz Muentefering to replace Beck, and picked Frank-Walter Steinmeier to run against Merkel in the next federal election. Steinmeier has been Germany’s foreign minister since November 2005, and also serves as Germany’s vice-chancellor.
On Jun. 14, Steinmeier criticized the economic policies of the country’s right-wing parties, saying, "The conservatives and the FDP cannot be granted a majority because the ideology that got us into this crisis can’t be the answer to the crisis."
Polling Data
What party would you support in Germany’s next federal election?
|
|
Jun. 12 |
May 31 |
May 15 |
|
Christian-Democratic Union (CDU) / |
35% |
35% |
36% |
|
Social Democratic Party (SPD) |
21% |
24% |
24% |
|
Free Democratic Party (FDP) |
15% |
15% |
14% |
|
Green Party (Grune) |
13% |
11% |
11% |
|
Left Party (Linke) |
11% |
10% |
10% |
Source: Forsa / Stern / RTL
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 2,501 German adults, conducted from Jun. 8 to Jun. 12, 2009. Margin of error is 2.5 per cent.
