(SPERRFRIST) / European and local elections in Germany have begun
Published: Sunday, Jun 9th 2024, 08:10
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The European elections began in Germany on Sunday. At the same time, local elections are being held in eight federal states and local by-elections in Thuringia. The elections are seen as an important test of political sentiment in Europe's largest economy. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's "traffic light" coalition is threatened with painful losses.
According to the latest polls, Scholz's Social Democrats would fall below their weak result in the 2019 European elections (15.8%) with 14 to 15 percent. That would be a good ten points less than in the 2021 federal election. At 13 to 15 percent, the Greens would fall well short of their record result from 2019 (20.5 percent). The FDP, as the third coalition partner, would only achieve between 4% and 5%. The name "Ampel" coalition is derived from the party colors red (SPD), yellow (FDP) and green.
As the strongest force, the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) are likely to send the most German MEPs to the EU Parliament, with 30 percent according to the polls. They belong to the EPP group, whose lead candidate is Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, also a German Christian Democrat and a former federal minister.
16-year-olds can also vote
The German right-wing populists (AfD) are likely to perform quite strongly and could become the second strongest force with recent poll results of 14 to 16%. However, they have fallen back significantly after peaking at over 20% in recent months. Their performance in the local elections in eastern Germany, where three state elections will be held in September, is eagerly awaited.
This also applies to the left-wing populist alliance Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW), a spin-off from the Left Party, which was founded by the member of the Bundestag of the same name in January. In polls, it is polling up to 7.0 percent.
The most populous EU country accounts for 96 of the 720 seats in the EU Parliament. 60.9 million Germans are eligible to vote and, according to the Federal Returning Officer, around 4.1 million citizens of other EU countries are also allowed to vote in Germany. The voting age has been lowered to 16. In contrast to Bundestag elections, there is no threshold clause for EU elections in Germany. Even splinter parties have the chance to send a representative to Brussels and Strasbourg.
The first forecasts on the outcome of the election are expected in Germany at 6.00 pm.
©Keystone/SDA
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