RT  September 16, 2026

The CDU is reeling from its state election loss to the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt last week. The AfD secured 43.8% of the vote, with the CDU a distant second at 17.2%. Merz’ party has been trailing the AfD in opinion polls for over a year, and an equally dismal performance is expected in elections in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Berlin this weekend, where the CDU is polling at 7% and 20%, respectively.

Just over a year into his chancellorship, CDU members and the German public are losing confidence in Merz. Both Merz and his center-left predecessor, Olaf Scholz, have presided over a country in rapid industrial decline, with Germany’s largest manufacturers – including Volkswagen and BASF – closing plants due to spiraling energy costs, a direct result of Berlin’s self-imposed embargo on Russian oil and gas.

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Over the weekend, an INSA poll found that a majority of CDU voters no longer support the chancellor, while 78% of the general public disapprove of his leadership.

As Merz’ approval rating tanks at home, Germany’s standing at the UN has diminished. In June, the country lost a bid for a temporary seat on the UN Security Council for the first time in history. Critics blamed Berlin’s iron-clad support for Israel – with the German government going as far as describing Israeli strikes on Palestinian schools as “self-defense” – coupled with fierce opposition to Russia, a position that appeared hypocritical to the Global South.

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https://www.rt.com/news/645858-germany-merz-cancels-un/