AfD Holds Lead in German Polls as Chancellor Friedrich Merz Hits Record Low Approval

A national survey conducted by polling institute INSA for the newspaper Bild am Sonntag shows voter approval for Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Germany's governing coalition falling to record low levels, while the Alternative for Germany (AfD) maintains a lead in national party preferences. According to the published data, the AfD reached 29 percent support among voters, placing the party ten percentage points ahead of the conservative CDU/CSU alliance.

The CDU/CSU dropped to 19 percent, representing a decline of one percentage point compared to the institute's previous survey published on October 31. The Greens remained unchanged at 15 percent, closely followed by the Social Democratic Party (SPD) at 14 percent. Die Linke retained ten percent of voter support, while the Free Democratic Party (FDP) held five percent and the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) registered three percent. Other political parties collectively rose by one percentage point to reach five percent.

The poll highlights widespread dissatisfaction with the leadership of Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Eighty-two percent of surveyed voters stated they were dissatisfied with the Chancellor's performance, marking the highest negative rating recorded for Merz. Only 13 percent of respondents reported feeling satisfied with his work, down from 24 percent approval recorded in January.

The black-red federal coalition comprising the CDU/CSU and SPD faced identical negative ratings from the electorate. A total of 82 percent of respondents expressed discontent with the overall work of the federal administration, setting another record figure. The polling results document a parallel decline in support for both the coalition parties and the personal approval ratings of the head of government over the course of the year.

Written by Christiane Hofreiter christiane.hofreiter@alpineweekly.com