German Conservatives Close Gap In Ranking With Socialists 6 Days Before Elections - Survey

BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th September, 2021) The conservative bloc of the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union parties (CDU/CSU), successors to outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel, has narrowed the gap with the left-wing Social Democratic Party (SPD) to three percentage points six days before the Bundestag elections, according to a survey commissioned by the German Bild tabloid.

A week ago, a poll conducted for the Bild by the same company, INSA, showed that the CDU/CSU lagged behind the SPD by 5.5 percentage points. The new poll found that public support for the conservatives increased by 1.5 percentage points, while it also decreased for the socialists by one. As a result, the gap has narrowed to three percentage points, the survey found.

The SPD are expected to take the lead with 25% of the vote, while the CDU/CSU bloc may claim 22%.

Meanwhile, the Alliance 90/The Greens party showed a similar result to that of last week, ranking third with 15% support, the poll showed. The Free Democratic Party may get 12%, while the right-wing Alternative for Germany party lost half a percentage point and could secure 11%. The Left party's rating remains unchanged at 6%, which is only one percentage point above the threshold for admission to the Bundestag.

The poll was conducted on September 17-20 and covered 2054 people. The margin of error for this sample size is about two and a half percentage points.

Germany is set to hold a crucial Bundestag election on September 26, in effect electing a new chancellor, as longtime leader Merkel steps down after fifteen years.