CDU leads Lower Saxony local elections as AfD surges to 16.5%
Conservatives win 27.7% but lose ground; far-right AfD more than doubles its 2021 share in a vote seen as a test for the federal government.
KEY POINTS
- CDU leads with 27.7% (-4.0 pts), SPD 24.5% (-5.5 pts), AfD 16.5% (+11.9 pts)
- Greens 13.6% (-2.3 pts), Linke 5.9% (+3.1 pts), FDP 3.6% (-2.9 pts)
- Wolfsburg: CDU's Weilmann wins outright with 50.1%; Wilhelmshaven: independent Haarmann wins with ~55%
- Hanover: Green mayor Onay faces runoff vs SPD's von der Ohe in two weeks
- Provisional final results expected Monday; seen as barometer for federal mood
The CDU emerged as the strongest party in Lower Saxony's municipal elections with 27.7 percent, according to an Infratest dimap projection for NDR. The Social Democrats fell to 24.5 percent and the Greens to 13.6 percent, while the AfD jumped to 16.5 percent — an 11.9-point gain since 2021.
About 6.3 million voters were eligible to choose more than 2,200 local councils, mayors and district administrators. The provisional final results are expected Monday morning. CDU state leader Sebastian Lechner acknowledged a "credibility problem" and said his party had felt voter anger toward Berlin.
“We have a credibility problem that we need to discuss calmly in the coming weeks.”
In Wolfsburg, CDU incumbent Dennis Weilmann narrowly secured an absolute majority with 50.1 percent. Wilhelmshaven elected independent Eva Maria Haarmann as its first female mayor with roughly 55 percent. Hanover heads to a runoff in two weeks after Green incumbent Belit Onay led but missed an outright majority.
The vote was closely watched nationally after the AfD's state election victory in Saxony-Anhalt and amid Volkswagen's crisis. State elections in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Berlin follow on Sunday.
4 more sources below
COMMENTS (0)
No comments yet. Be the first.
RELATED STORIES
US Court Filing Says ICE Will Not Monitor Midterm Polls
A court filing says federal immigration agents will not serve as poll monitors in the November 3 midterm elections, though voter anxiety persists.
US midterm elections could reshape Washington and affect Brazil and Argentina
Political analysts say the November 3 congressional vote may shift power in Washington and influence bilateral ties with Brazil and Argentina.
STF ministers feared Bolsonaro release before runoff, columnist says
Supreme Court justices reportedly worried Kassio Nunes Marques might free Jair Bolsonaro before the presidential runoff, according to O Globo columnist Malu Gaspar.
- Michoacan prosecutor says CJNG ordered killing of former Uruapan mayor one year ago
- White House plans executive actions if Democrats win Congress
- Lula Plans Ministerial Reshuffle with Alckmin and Haddad in Focus
- Pennsylvania residents resist AI data center projects ahead of US midterms
- Madras High Court Bars Protests Targeting Judges and Orders Online Monitoring
This page was compiled with AI assistance from the outlets named above and passed an automated language check before publication. Montegre has no reporters of its own; the byline names the outlets the story was compiled from. Method and editorial standards