Initial German exit polls show startlingly close race

published 26 September 2021

The German parliamentary election remains too close to call based on initial exit polls, but there are still some key takeaways.

There doesn't appear to be any major surprises, save for perhaps just how tight things are between the center-left Social Democratic Party and outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union-Christian Social Union alliance. The two are essentially neck-and-neck. Meanwhile, the Green Party looks like it will finish in a clear third.

Whether the CDU finishes in second or ekes out a plurality, it'll be a historically low-showing for the party, which sat somewhere between 10 and 15 percent higher in the past four elections. (Merkel's departure has a lot to do with the decline.) On the flip side, the Greens are primed for their best result ever in a national election, putting them in a good position for whatever governing coalition emerges. The country's far-right party, Alternative for Germany, is on pace for a slight decline compared to their own historic showing in 2017.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Ultimately, there's a lot of uncertainty. Deutsche Welle reports that there are a few possibilities for how things will play out — the Greens and SPD could link up, or the CDU/CSU could join forces with the Greens and the pro-business Free Democrats, for instance. No matter what happens, Merkel's replacement won't be elected until a coalition is formed, meaning she'll remain in office in a caretaker role. Read more at Deutsche Welle.

Explore More

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox