After the Baden‑Württemberg state election, Green party Spitzenkandidat Cem Özdemir refused to declare a victory yet. “What an election campaign, what a remarkable catch‑up” he told the party’s celebration in Stuttgart. “But it is still too early to say anything definitive”.
He stressed that the forthcoming cooperation must again be a “partnership on equal footing”. “The campaign is over now. We need to turn the page together”. He mentioned that the CDU and his party had governed the state for ten years “well and successfully together” highlighting the shared successes of the coalition partners and noting that the CDU has every reason to be as proud of those achievements as they are.
According to early projections from ARD and ZDF, the Greens are expected to receive about 31.8 % of the vote, placing them ahead of the CDU’s 29.8 %. If the green‑black coalition continues, Özdemir is likely to become premier. The CDU could, in theory, pair with the AfD, which polls at 17.8 %, but the Christian Democrats rule that out. The day was painful for the SPD, which secured only 5.5 %. Both the FDP and Die Linke, each at 4.5 %, fail to enter the state parliament.
In his first post‑election speech, CDU Spitzenkandidat Manuel Hagel avoided categorising the results or acknowledging defeat. Instead, he thanked all voters and supporters for their trust. Although the CDU had led the polls for months, the ARD and ZDF projections placed it in second place; nevertheless, its share has risen clearly compared to five years ago.
