State elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg‑Vorpommern are scheduled for the 20th. A ZDF poll on the 17th put CDU support in Mecklenburg‑Vorpommern at 6%, just above the 5% threshold for parliamentary representation; falling below 5% would be "a nightm

2026-09-20

State elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg‑Vorpommern are scheduled for the 20th. A ZDF poll on the 17th put CDU support in Mecklenburg‑Vorpommern at 6%, just above the 5% threshold for parliamentary representation; falling below 5% would be "a nightmare" and could be the final straw to topple MERZ. The risk follows AfD's roughly 44% win in Saxony‑Anhalt two weeks ago, where the CDU's vote share plunged to about 17%.