Concerns and Hopes: Political Parties React to Election Results

The state elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania have sparked both hope and fear among parties in Saxony. The Left Party drew courage from its comrades’ election victory in Berlin, hoping for success in the Free State. The party leadership pointed to the mayoral election in Leipzig. “In 2027, we want to elect Skadi Jennicke as mayor of Leipzig—the largest city in eastern Germany—for the first time. In Leipzig, too, the issue is ensuring that rent, groceries, and a good quality of life are affordable for people.”

In Berlin, The Left Party secured 25.7 percent of the second votes, clearly outpacing the CDU (18.8 percent). In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the party reached 6.5 percent and could once again become part of the government. There, the SPD led by Minister President Manuela Schwesig achieved 35.5 percent, placing second behind the AfD (38.2 percent). For the CDU, the elections turned into a debacle. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, it was ousted from the state parliament with only 4.9 percent of the vote.

Chancellor Merz Wants to Remain in Office

On election night, Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) announced that he would remain in office despite the CDU’s poor results and continue on the path of reform. “I want to move our country forward,” said the CDU chairman in Berlin. “The reforms must go ahead.”

The Left Party in Saxony took this as proof that Merz has “obviously lost all touch with reality in Germany”—especially with regard to eastern Germany: “His attempt to sell brutal reforms as a solution is not only doomed to failure but also a major reason for the strength of the far right.”

No Sympathy for Chancellor Merz’s “Business as Usual” Approach

SPD leader Hennig Homann expressed his disappointment. “I have no sympathy for Chancellor Merz’s ‘business as usual’ rhetoric. The state elections in East Germany have shown that people do not want his policy of social indifference,” he emphasized. “I believe there is a shared understanding that we need to bring about change in this country. But this reform policy requires social balance.”

According to Homann, East German perspectives must be given greater consideration in the reform debates. “Many changes that must or should be made at the federal level have much more immediate consequences for people in eastern Germany.” Here, there is a lack of savings; here, employment contracts are “structured differently”; here, people earn less money.

Conservative CDU members: The party must finally wake up

The conservative Heimatunion faction within the Saxony CDU titled its election analysis “If the CDU doesn’t finally wake up, we don’t need it anymore!” The results in Berlin were bad for the CDU, and in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, they were an absolute disaster. 

“A change in chancellors—which has been discussed repeatedly in recent days—wouldn’t improve anything. For one thing, there are hardly any alternatives to Friedrich Merz; for another, it wouldn’t remedy the coalition partner’s lack of willingness to reform at the federal level,” argued Sven Eppinger, head of the Heimatunion.

“If CDU Chairman and Federal Chancellor Merz does not demonstrate the urgently needed leadership and take action—if necessary, even against the will of his destructive coalition partner—the CDU will go down with Captain Merz at the helm,” Eppinger speculated. 

Criticism of Interior Minister Schuster’s Remarks on The Left

The Left criticized an Instagram post by Saxony’s Interior Minister Armin Schuster regarding the Berlin Senate election. The CDU politician had commented on the election victory with the following words: “The Left’s success in Berlin is a slap in the face to law-abiding citizens. Anyone who fails to take a clear stand against organized crime, anti-Semites, and left-wing extremists has no place governing in Berlin!”

Schaper Accuses Schuster of Denying Reality

“I was taken aback by Minister of State Schuster’s remarks and searched in vain for comparable posts on the State Ministry of the Interior’s account following the AfD’s election victories in Saxony-Anhalt or Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. This suggests a pronounced denial of reality on the part of the minister,” said Susanne Schaper, leader of the Left Party parliamentary group.

The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, which failed to win any seats in either Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania or Berlin, was at least pleased with the voter turnout. “More people want to have a say, want to articulate their political views, and help shape the future. That’s a good sign for democracy. But it also means that more people took a close look at the BSW, and many decided otherwise,” emphasized party and parliamentary group leader Ronny Kupke. The BSW needs to make it clearer what it stands for.