Europe — 2026-09-21

AfD Wins Mecklenburg-Vorpommern With 38 Percent as Die Linke Takes Berlin in Dual German State Elections

BLUFDespite twin AfD victories and the CDU's worst-ever state result, Merz's removal as chancellor by late December remains very unlikely absent a formal internal challenge or named successor.

The AfD won Mecklenburg-Vorpommern with about 38 percent of the vote, edging the SPD's mid-30s showing, while Chancellor Friedrich Merz's CDU fell to 4.9 percent, its worst-ever result and short of the 5 percent threshold 12. Merz called the result a "disaster" but said he intends to stay on; AfD co-leader Alice Weidel said the CDU "cannot continue" under him, and co-leader Tino Chrupalla called for his resignation 12. In Berlin, Die Linke placed first with about 25 percent, ahead of the CDU near 19 percent, while the AfD's share was reported as 16 percent by Al Jazeera and AFP or 13.5 percent by CNN 123. Die Linke's lead candidate, Elif Eralp, told supporters "love and justice have triumphed over hatred" 124 and pledged to nationalize an estimated 220,000 privately held housing units 3.

Analysis
Merz's removal as CDU leader and chancellor within the next three months is very unlikely: he has explicitly committed to staying despite Weidel's and Chrupalla's resignation calls, and no formal leadership challenge or named successor has emerged, though back-to-back AfD wins in Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, compounded by the CDU's sub-5-percent showing, deepen doubts about his mandate short of triggering internal removal mechanisms. Confidence is moderate, since wire and aggregator reporting converges on Merz's own statements but offers no visibility into private CDU deliberations. The collapse may reflect a region-specific East German protest dynamic rather than nationwide repudiation, given the CDU held roughly a fifth of the Berlin vote. If Merz survives, coalition partners and EU counterparts continue current reform and Ukraine-aid negotiations while discounting his diminished political capital.
4 sources
  1. Far left wins in Berlin, far right in Germany northeast vote: Exit polls - Al Jazeera
  2. Chancellor Merz calls Germany state elections results a "disaster," as far-right surge again - CNN
  3. Far-Left Party Wins Berlin Election, Pledging to Nationalise Housing - U.S. News & World Report (AFP)
  4. Die Linke wins Berlin election, putting Elif Eralp in contention for mayor - Turkish Minute

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