Preliminary projections for the North Rhine-Westphalia municipal elections indicate a potential shift in the political landscape. According to a forecast released by the Institute Infratest for WDR, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) is poised to emerge as the strongest force.
The projections, released this evening, show the CDU currently at 34% statewide. The Social Democratic Party (SPD) follows with 22.5%, while the Green Party’s support has decreased to 11.5%. The Free Democratic Party (FDP) is projected at 3.5%, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) at 16.5%, The Left party at 5.5% and other parties combined at 6.5%.
Compared to the CDU’s performance in the recent federal election in North Rhine-Westphalia, these results suggest an improvement for the CDU, largely maintaining the support garnered in the last municipal election where they secured 30.1% of the vote. The AfD is demonstrating considerable growth, nearly tripling their support since the 2020 municipal elections and remaining close to their federal election showing. The Green Party’s numbers present a notable contrast to their previous performance, significantly lower than the 20.0% they achieved in the last municipal vote, though aligning closely with their recent federal election result.
It is important to note that these statewide results serve primarily as informational indicators. The actual outcome and significance will be determined by the results in individual cities and municipalities across North Rhine-Westphalia. Voter turnout is estimated to be around 58.5%, a significant increase compared to the 51.9% recorded in the last municipal election.
