A poll conducted by the opinion research institute Forsa indicates that 51 percent of Germans are doubtful that the Union party could gain more approval among voters if a candidate other than Friedrich Merz (CDU) were to become Chancellor. This survey was ordered by the publications Stern and the broadcaster RTL.
Currently, 43 percent of Germans believe that a change in Chancellor would be beneficial. Furthermore, six percent of respondents stated they were undecided. Notably, the willingness among West German citizens to accept a leadership change has increased. This figure is up from 41 percent in early June, when publications like Stern highlighted the potential candidacy of Hendrik Wüst, the Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia.
Among supporters of the CDU/CSU, only a minority (46 percent) currently advocate for a leadership change; 48 percent are skeptical about the idea. Conversely, supporters of the SPD, the Greens, and Die Linke are more inclined to believe that the Union would have a greater chance of achieving better election results with a different Chancellor other than Merz. Overall, the support for a change in leadership has seen a slight increase across all political party bases since the beginning of June.
The AfD supporters, however, continue to mistrust any potential change. Sixty-nine percent of them believe that another CDU/CSU candidate would not be beneficial.
