The chairman of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, Jens Spahn, says that the national government bears no shared responsibility for the CDU’s loss in the Baden‑Württemberg state election; he thinks the opposite.
Spahn told the TV channel “Welt” on Sunday evening that the party had “quite a tailwind in the last two or three weeks”. He specifically cited the CDU federal conference held in Stuttgart before the state election, describing it as a sign of unity that produced a strong result.
He added that at the federal level they had also decided on important measures: the “Heating Act” and the “Citizen’s Allowance” were both abolished. “That, by the way, led to a noticeably better result when turnout rises compared to the previous election” he said. The number of absolute votes for the CDU in Baden‑Württemberg should therefore have increased significantly compared to the last result. Spahn admitted, however, that “so far it hasn’t been enough to win first place. That’s the bitter part”.
According to the latest forecasts from ARD and ZDF, the Greens are expected to win an average of 30.3 %, outpacing the CDU’s 29.7 %. This would mean that Green leader Cem Özdemir could become the next Minister‑President if the green‑black coalition continues. While the CDU could, in principle, form a coalition with the AfD-which polls at 18.8 %-the Christian Democrats reject that possibility. The day was a difficult one for the SPD, which is expected to receive only 5.6 %. The FDP will fall out of the state parliament with 4.4 %, and the Left, with the same percentage, will also miss a seat in the legislature.
