(Angus Reid Global Scan) - The coalition of the Christian-Democratic Union (CSU) and the Bavarian Christian-Social Party (CSU) remains the top political group for German voters, according to a poll by Infratest-Dimap. 42 per cent of respondents would vote for the alliance in the next federal election.

The governing Social Democratic Party (SPD) of chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is second with 27 per cent, followed by the coalition of the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) and the Electoral Alternative for Labour and Social Justice (WASG) with 11 per cent, the Green Party (Grune) with nine per cent, and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) with eight per cent.

On Jul. 1, Schroeder deliberately lost a no-confidence motion in the Federal Diet after a 151-296 vote, with 148 abstentions. German president Horst Koehler has 21 days to decide whether to call an early election. There is growing speculation that the ballot could be scheduled for Sept. 18.

In an interview with Berliner Zeitung published on Jul. 16, CDU chancellor candidate Angela Merkel said Germany would not commit troops to the Iraq coalition effort under her guidance, saying, "We would not have done that and we will not do that." Germany committed 2,200 soldiers to a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) peacekeeping force in Afghanistan.

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