Merz vows to press ahead with reforms after party's historic defeat in 2 German state elections

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) suffered significant losses in two state elections on Sunday. According to exit polls by public broadcaster ARD, the CDU came in with just 5 per cent in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, its lowest result ever since World War II in any state, and 20 per cent in Berlin, behind the Left party at 24.5 per cent. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) made significant gains in both elections.

Merz acknowledged his party's result as a "disaster" but vowed to press ahead with potentially painful reforms to Europe's biggest economy. He argued that Germany's economic and political problems made difficult and potentially unpopular reforms more urgent, not less. The CDU's poor performance has further weakened Merz's standing, with rumours of a possible replacement mid-term.

The AfD's strong showing has also raised concerns, with the party projected to take 38 per cent of the vote share in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, according to public broadcaster ZDF. However, it is unlikely to govern in the state as other parties refuse to work with it. Merz's authority was already damaged by the CDU's stinging defeat to AfD in a previous election, and Sunday's results are likely to add to the pressure on him.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Local Germany, South China Morning Post, PBS NewsHour, BBC News, Euronews — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.