(12/24/09) -

Christian Democrats Stay Ahead in Germany

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The governing Christian-Democratic Union (CDU) and its associate Bavarian Christian-Social Party (CSU) remain on top of Germany’s political scene, according to a poll by Forsa released by Stern and RTL. 35 per cent of respondents would vote for either party in the next federal election, down two points in a week.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The governing Christian-Democratic Union (CDU) and its associate Bavarian Christian-Social Party (CSU) remain on top of Germany’s political scene, according to a poll by Forsa released by Stern and RTL. 35 per cent of respondents would vote for either party in the next federal election, down two points in a week.

The Social Democratic Party (SPD) is second with 21 per cent, followed by the Green Party (Grune) with 13 per cent, the Free Democratic Party (FDP) with 12 per cent, and the Left Party (Linke) with 11 per cent.

In November 2005, CDU leader Angela Merkel was sworn in as Germany’s first female head of government following a federal election. Her "Grand Coalition" administration featured members of the CDU, CSU and SPD.

In September, German voters participated in a new federal election. Final results gave the CDU-CSU 33.8 per cent of the vote and 239 seats, followed by the SPD with 23 per cent and 146 mandates. This time, Merkel invited the FDP to form a government. FDP leader Guido Westerwelle serves as foreign minister.

On Dec. 21, Greens lawmaker Tom Koenigs questioned the rationale for a recent surge in troops in Afghanistan, saying, "We need more police in Afghanistan, not more soldiers."

Polling Data

What party would you support in Germany’s next federal election?

Source: Forsa / Stern / RTL
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 2,500 German adults, conducted from Dec. 14 to Dec. 18, 2009. Margin of error is 2.5 per cent.