Meltz conservatives slide in yougov polls – dw – 02/18/2025

German Prime Minister Olaf Scholz stressed that it is still possible to “facing racist hatred” in commemoration of the fifth anniversary of the far-right Hanau shooting attack, which killed nine people near Frankfurt.

“Let’s not leave any room for hatred,” Scholz said, “How many people personally tell us that they are afraid of being attacked or suspected because they come from an immigrant background. He added that he was saddened by whether he was writing a letter to him.

He praised the street movement against racism and division, referring to frequent protests against the far right ahead of the German (AFD) far right alternatives voting second this weekend. .

“We can stand up to the racist hatred that supported Hanau’s murder,” he said.

The 2020 shooting sparked shock and rage in Germany. Both have taken into account the legacy of 20th century fascists under Adolf Hitler, as serious gun crimes remain relatively rare.

The eight victims had a background in the migration, and one victim was a German citizen of Romani. The gunman chose the location of his attack due to his popularity among the immigrant community.

The German Association of Far Right Alternatives (AFD) has released an election poster with major printing errors.

Germany – German “German” – Spelled by AFD without “L”: Deutschand.

After satirical comments were made on the internet in response to the mistake, Berlin-Copenic AFD candidate Michael Greichmann claimed that it was all “picture puzzles.”

The poster displayed the slogan “Granny against the Left,” a spoofing of the protest group “Granny against the Right.”

AFD later erased a Platform X post featuring spelled posters.

Jan van Eken, one of the two co-leaders of the German Socialist Left Party, told DW he believes his message resonates with the youth.

Comments come after YouGov polls showed the party with 9% support. Previous polls revealed that the left party had promised 5% of the votes needed to enter Parliament.

Van Aken told DW that 18,000 people have joined the party since the launch of the campaign for the MC on February 23rd.

“And these are all active and young people currently campaigning, so there’s obvious energy wherever you go in Germany,” he said.

“I didn’t feel that in the party for 10 years, and that’s now reflected in the election survey,” he said.

He said the young people resonated with the party’s message, which he said was “take money from the rich and give it to the poor.”

The party’s second chief candidate, 36-year-old Heidi Lechinnek, led the left-hand campaign on Instagram and Tiktok social media platforms to bring youth votes to justice.

German financial experts hope that the economy will improve under the new government after Sunday’s federal election.

According to Leibniz’s European Economic Research Center (ZEW), German investors’ morale rose more than expected in February. The Economic Sentiment Index, which tracks expectations for the next six months, rose 26.0 points from 10.3 points in January, marking its biggest increase in two years.

“This growing optimism is probably due to hopes for a new German government that can act,” said Zew’s president Achim Wambach.

VP Bank’s chief economist Thomas Gitzel said the rising economic expectations underscores recent positive trends, including rising production orders and lower inflation.

“Therefore, the economy is now bottoming out and there is good reason to hope that things will gradually improve after the spring months,” Gitzel said.

At the same time, close observers of Europe’s biggest economy do not expect to see dramatic changes in the wake of the February 23rd vote.

The two major economic institutions have already predicted a third year economic contraction in 2025.

Zew surveyed 158 analysts and institutional investors for the survey.

Immigration and the economy are topics that have dominated political debate as they reached the 23rd election.

But what do each party represent? And what promises did they make to voters?

Check out DW’s guide to summarizing the main party’s campaign platform.

The CDU/CSU block of major prime minister candidate Friedrich Merz suffered losses in the latest YouGov poll released on Tuesday.

In the survey, support for conservatives was 27%, down 2% points compared to the previous week. It’s their worst YouGov result since August 2023.

Meanwhile, the party on the left was 9%, up 3% points. That is the result of their best yougov in their current legislative period. Yougov said the change is being driven primarily by younger voters.

AFD was second in 20%, down 1 point, while Prime Minister Olaf Scholz’s support for the SPD rose points at 17%.

The greens remained at 12%. The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) was also unchanged at 5%, as was the business-centric Liberal Democrats (FDP) at 4%.

About 2,131 people were surveyed between February 14th and 17th to vote.

According to the poll, the data represents eligible German voters age 18 and older.

The four main candidates for the Prime Minister were questioned by the public on live television on Monday night.

Approximately 5 million people tuned to see the town hall style event.

When answering questions, conservative CDU/CSU block Friedrich Merz pledges a stricter attitude towards welfare payments, citizens’ more tax relief, illegally speeding up the deportation of migrants in Germany He said that.

Center-Left SPD Prime Minister Olaf Scholz has submitted questions regarding the issue of retirement funds, healthcare, training, payments and staffing shortages. He proposed more flexible career choices, higher employment, and pathways for foreign workers to fund future pensions.

The Prime Minister also acknowledged the historical importance of American ties, but also condemned Vice President JD Vance, who was involved in German election interference.

Far-right AFD candidate Alice Weidel argued that foreigners are increasing crime rates and said she is opposed to illegal migration but is interested in consolidation.

She answered questions about the party’s opposition to gay marriage. Weidel himself is in same-sex relationships.

Finally, Greens Prime Minister candidate Robert Habeck asked about the cost of upgrading energy infrastructure.

He pointed to wars and rising energy prices in Ukraine, saying his party has advanced initiatives to settle the German bureaucracy. He also acknowledged that one of the government’s biggest mistakes today was unable to fully invest in long-term structural funds.

There will only be five days until the federal election on February 23, when German voters decide who will run the next government.

DW tracks the main story of the campaign trail and answers the most pressing questions.

On Tuesday, conservative prime minister candidate Friedrich Merz is scheduled to launch a campaign in Halle and Potsdam’s eastern cities, while incumbent centre left Prime Minister Olaf Scholz travels to Oldenberg and Emeden in the northeastern Germany.