Support for Germany’s far-right party, Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), has further increased since the parliamentary elections in February, matching the popularity of the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) for the first time.
A poll by research firm INSA for Bild newspaper revealed both the CDU/CSU and the AfD are at 24%. In the February 23 election, the Christian Democrats won with 28.6% of the votes. AfD came second with 20.8%.
CDU leader Friederich Merz, who is likely to be the next German Chancellor, is currently negotiating with the Social Democrats (SPD) to form a new government. Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s SPD received 16.4% in February and maintains that score according to the poll.
In Germany, there is a so-called ‘firewall’ against cooperation with the AfD, similar to the cordon sanitaire in other countries.
