2009 State and Federal elections in Germany

[big bad fab]

Interestingly, Secretary of State Frank-Walter Steinmeier (SPD) is now more popular than Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) (74% approve of the job Steinmeier is doing and 65% approve of the job Merkel is doing), but according to 2 polls the SPD doesn't benefit and Merkel would defeat Steinmeier by a wide margin in a direct vote for Chancellor:

Forsa

Merkel - 51%
Steinmeier - 23%

CDU - 38%
SPD - 23%

Infratest dimap

Merkel - 52%
Steinmeier - 35%

CDU - 37%
SPD - 23%

Foreign policy is more and more, in many European countries, something completely disconnected from other political subjects and voters aren't interested in it.

So, they can appreciate (or not) a foreign secretary or minister, whatever his/her political stand.

[big bad fab]

If only it'd be a preview of national results in late September... (sigh)

[big bad fab]

Toying with an electoral reform before general elections, while being sure the reform won't be effective, is normally a losing path for any political party...

As for CDU votes being below pre-election polls, this year, Merkel's strength is more in likely partner, FDP, than in his own party. So, she may make it, after all.

[big bad fab]

Die Linke below 10% ? (and behind the SPD in the East)
Do we see the same in other opinion polls ?

[big bad fab]

In the last polls the Linke and the SPD was in East Germany both at 20 -25%. So it isn't a surprise when the SPD is 1% in front. On the other hand from the Linke you hear nothing new. It's normal that their numbers go down, but they have a good chance to get more than 10% in September.

In comparison with the past, OK, but I was talking about this year's opinion polls.

[big bad fab]

In the last polls the Linke and the SPD was in East Germany both at 20 -25%. So it isn't a surprise when the SPD is 1% in front. On the other hand from the Linke you hear nothing new. It's normal that their numbers go down, but they have a good chance to get more than 10% in September.

In comparison with the past, OK, but I was talking about this year's opinion polls.

I speak about this year . This is a good side for opinion polls in Germany and this are the polls for East Germany:
http://www.wahlrecht.de/umfragen/dimap/ost.htm

Since January 2009 the difference between Linke and SPD is  not more than 6%. Mostly it's the same or the Linke have 1-3% more.

Oh, deeply sorry, I've read "polls" as "elections" (2005) and not "opinion polls".
Thanks for the numbers.

[big bad fab]

Latest Info GmbH poll for the newspaper "Handelsblatt":

CDU/CSU: 34%
SPD: 27%
FDP: 12%
Left: 12%
Greens: 10%
Others: 5%

Red-Red-Green: 49%
Black-Yellow: 46%

Even Forsa is now showing the CDU-advantage at less than 10%:

CDU/CSU: 35%
SPD: 26%
FDP: 13%
Greens: 11%
Left: 10%
Others: 5%

Black-Yellow: 48%
Red-Red-Green: 47%

Yep! Here we go!

Drop proportional representation everywhere and forever...

[big bad fab]

Apart from a FDP a bit up, come election day, the results may well be frighteningly close to those of 2005...