Far right rises 12 percentage points in Lower Saxony elections

ANDthese elections were considered a barometer after the victory of the party last week in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.

According to the calculations of the Infratest Dimap, based on the preliminary results of the municipal and district elections, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Chancellor Friedrich Merz, remained the most voted party in Lower Saxony, although it dropped four percentage points to 27.7%.

The Social Democratic Party (SPD) was second, also with a drop of 5.5 percentage points, to 24.5%.

The AfD, which won the regional elections in Saxony-Anhalt last week with 43.8% of the votes, which can guarantee the formation of its first government in a German state, rose 11.9 points to 16.5%.

It was followed by Greens (13.6%), Left (5.9%) and Liberals (3.6%).

After the political turbulence caused by the outcome of Saxony-Anhalt, and with the regional elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (northeast) and Berlin just a week away, the results of the municipal elections in Lower Saxony were awaited with great expectation.

The AfD is traditionally weaker in the west and had won only 4.6% of the votes in the previous local elections in the region.

Of the 6.3 million voters able to vote in Lower Saxony, at least 50.67% participated in the elections, about seven percentage points more than in 2022, although the correspondence votes have not yet been counted.

In this coastal region of the North Sea, the local AfD is classified by the authorities as a proven case of right-wing extremism, although the party has resorted to court classification.

In the regional elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the polls also point to a party victory, although in Berlin a victory is foreseen for the left-wing candidate, with the AfD remaining third behind the Christian Democrats.