The regional elections in Hesse, where Germany’s most prosperous “Country” Bavaria and the banking capital Frankfurt are located, brought a great victory to the government. conservative bloc and confirmed the progress far right. On the other hand, as Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SPD) fell to its lowest levels in history, one of its coalition partners, greenshis honor was saved, and the third ally of the tripartite party in Berlin, the Liberal Party (FDP), was excluded from the Bavarian parliament.
The result in Bavaria was particularly difficult for Scholz’s social democracy: it received only 8.5% of the vote, according to estimates by German state broadcaster ZDF, putting it last among parties with seats in the Munich regional assembly. Will continue to be the dominant power Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) the prime minister, Markus SöderDespite a slight decrease, it was close to 37%. The votes of right-wing populism, represented by the so-called Free Voters, coalition partners in Munich, rose to 14 percent and were already far-right. Alternative for Germany (AfD) It went up to 15 percent. In other words, it exceeds 65 percent of the total between the moderate right and the most radical formations.
Hesse It also strengthened the conservatives of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the leading opposition force at the national level. They will continue to lead the regional government with 34.5 percent of the vote, followed by the AfD with 16 percent of the vote. The Greens, the parliamentary partners of the outgoing conservative Boris Rhein, came in third place with 15.5%. There was a significant drop of four points, but they were half a point above the Social Democrats. Scholz’s party’s commitment to nominate Interior Minister Nancy Faeser did not bring the success they expected and caused them to lose four points compared to the previous regional elections.
Stand up for right-wing populism
The result of the Free Electors in Bavaria is above all a personal achievement. Hubert Aywanger, Leaders. Although it no longer has an absolute majority in the 2018 elections, it became the coalition partner of the CSU, which has been the dominant party of this prosperous “Land” since 1950. Prime Minister Söder later thought it was less bad if he entered the government. In short, because it did not break the security cordon maintained by the entire parliamentary spectrum over the AfD, the only party in this spectrum with seats in the Bundestag (federal Parliament). The Free Electors is a regional formation with an increasing presence in other federal states. Becoming a coalition partner in the country’s second most populous “Country” after North Rhine-Westphalia in the West was a turning point at the time, and consolidation followed.
Aiwanger, Minister of Economy of the “Land”, which provides Germany with 18 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP), apparently survived the scandal that arose in the middle of the campaign due to an anti-Semitic pamphlet that he apparently wrote in his youth: his brother, whose author he later claimed to be.
It is assumed that the success of the Free Electors in Bavaria will help them fight to go beyond their regional rankings and reach the Bundestag in the general elections scheduled for 2025. Their anti-immigration slogans do not differ much from those propagated by the AfD. The difference is that since Aiwanger’s party is already in Bavaria, the possibility of becoming a government partner is not ruled out. The conservative bloc consisting of CSU and CDU is currently leading. Friedrich MerzHe has recently made a turn to the right, which puts him a long way from Angela Merkel’s leadership during her 16-year rule.
Double shock to the chancellor’s coalition
Bavaria and Hesse’s blow to Scholz’s tripartite party was no surprise, as all polls predicted it. But this comes at a critical moment for the Berlin coalition. The Chancellor’s social democrats, Green partners and liberals are a continuing example of poor alignment and mutual blockades. There are many projects that environmentalists see being blocked by liberals in the parliamentary process, especially those aimed at promoting renewable energy and seeking solutions to the energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine, but did not materialize.
The Greens salvaged some face, as they retained second place in Bavaria and maintained their chances of repeating as coalition partners in Hesse. Scholz’s Social Democrats, on the other hand, fell to record lows in both regional elections. Finance minister Christian Lindner’s Liberal Party (FDP), a hawk on fiscal restraint and public spending cuts, was left out of parliament in Bavaria and floundered above the 5% mark, the minimum required to win seats in Hesse.