German Conservatives Drop in Poll After Bungled Far-Right Vote

(Bloomberg) -- Support for Germany’s center-right CDU/CSU alliance led by Friedrich Merz dropped in a new poll, while the Greens and two smaller far-left parties gained.

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With less than three weeks before the election, Merz’s bloc lost two points and stood at 28% in a Forsa survey compared with a week earlier.

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It’s the first larger poll which shows a change after a disputed vote over a CDU/CSU bill in parliament where Merz, who’s the frontrunner in the race for Germany’s next chancellor, had sought a majority with the right-wing AfD. Still, the legislation ultimately failed on Friday.

The Forsa poll, conducted Jan. 28-Feb. 3, showed that Merz’s move — which triggered large protests all over Germany — didn’t push voters to Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s party. His Social Democrats held at 16%, ranking third behind the AfD, which remained at 20%. The Greens gained one point and rose to 15%, while the far-left Die Linke and BSW each gained one point to 5% and 4% respectively.

A separate poll by Insa, which was also carried out after the disputed vote, showed no major changes, with Merz’s conservatives holding stable at 30%.

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