Merz Election Disaster

The AfD came in first place in Mecklenburg, but the CDU did not get the five percent needed for parliament.

The AfD got thirty-eight percent of the vote in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and in Berlin they doubled their vote to sixteen percent.

There are people starting to vote for the AfD who are shy about confirming that fact to German pollsters, or German pollsters are starting to understate the level of the AfD's support.

Across the former East Germany, in every part now of the former East Germany, the CDU has become toxic and is losing everywhere.

The SPD suffered even more by aligning themselves by being tethered to the CDU.

What basically sealed the SPD's decline is that after Angela Merkel became chancellor, the SPD repeatedly entered into so-called grand coalitions with her.

I think it's too late for the SPD to detach from the CDU and reconstitute themselves in opposition.

They're going to have somebody who acts and does all the same things that Mertz does, but has a nicer smile and a smoother voice.

Markus Söder is a tough, experienced political figure who leans somewhat to the right and has had fairly extensive dealings with Vladimir Putin.

Hendrik Wüst is younger and more liberal, and I'm going to make a guess that's the man they're going to go for.