- A new parliament was elected in the north-west German state of Lower Saxony on Sunday.
- Despite the loss of votes, the Social Democrats remain the strongest party.
- The AFD was able to grow strongly, while the FDP has to tremble for membership in parliament.
According to the projections, the SPD received 33.2 percent of the votes (2017: 36.9). The CDU posted 28.0 to 28.1 percent and thus its worst state result in more than 60 years (2017: 33.6).
The Greens, on the other hand, have increased significantly and are in third place with 14.4 to 14.5 percent (2017: 8.7). The AfD reaches 11.2 to 11.3 percent (2017: 6.2). With 4.9 percent, the FDP was below the five percent hurdle for entering parliament (2017: 7.5).
According to the projections of ARD and ZDF, the SPD with 52 and the Greens with 22 seats together have an absolute majority. The CDU has 44 seats, followed by the AfD with 17 seats. The SPD had governed with the CDU for the past five years because it was not enough for the continuation of red-green in 2017.
Mood test for the traffic light coalition
Almost 6.1 million eligible voters were called to vote. Because the energy crisis is the main topic, the election is also considered a mood test for the traffic light coalition at federal level.
In all polls, Prime Minister Stephan Weil’s Social Democrats were several points ahead of the Christian Democrats who were co-governing. The 63-year-old SPD top candidate has governed Lower Saxony since 2013. If re-elected, he could become the longest-ruling state father in the history of Lower Saxony.
Legend:
Stephan Weil (left), SPD top candidate for the state elections in Lower Saxony, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stand on a stage during a final rally of their party in front of the Marktkirche in downtown Hanover.
KEYSTONE/DPA/Michael Matthey
In 2013, Weil ousted the then ruling CDU from power in the state capital Hanover with a red-green alliance. After the Greens lost a lot of votes in the 2017 state elections, he formed a coalition with the Christian Democrats. According to current surveys, it could be enough for a new edition of red-green.
According to analysts, the SPD in Lower Saxony benefits from the popularity of its top man and can thus score with the “office bonus”. At the national level, however, the Social Democrats have fallen behind in the polls in the face of a flagging economy and skyrocketing gas prices. With less than 20 percent, they usually only rank third behind the Christian Democrats and the Greens. An SPD victory in the northwest would therefore be tailwind for Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz.