Berlin Left notches historic win, far right takes narrow victory in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

BERLIN (CN) — For the first time in its history, Germany’s Left Party could lead Berlin. Despite extremely tight preelection polling, the Left commanded 25% of the vote in Berlin state elections, nearly doubling its previous haul and easily surpassing the incumbent Christian Democrats’ 18.9%.Losing control of the German capital isn’t the CDU’s only problem — its 4.9% in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern was just shy of the 5% hurdle needed to enter the state parliament, and was the worst regional result in the party’s 81-year history. It’s a bitter pill to swallow for Germany’s embattled chancellor, Friedrich Merz.The far-right Alternative for Germany continued its dizzying rise, tallying the most votes in yet another eastern regional election, its second victory this month. Merz called the result a “disaster.”“We are taking responsibility for this. I am taking responsibility because I want to bring our country forward,” said Merz.Sunday’s latest setbacks have shaken the deeply unpopular chancellor’s grip on power, and Merz’s outlook is as gloomy as ever. Regionally, though fierce debates and hard-knuckled negotiations stand between election night and actually building ruling coalitions, the two results signal two disparate alternatives to Germany’s ailing status quo.Alice Weidel (AfD), the party's federal chairwoman, reacts to the projections for the State Parliament election at the AfD election party in Berlin, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. (Fabian Sommer/dpa via AP)Berlin turns left“In our city, love and justice have triumphed over hate,” Elif Eralp, the Left Party’s mayoral candidate in Berlin, announced to a jubilant election party. “We have all demonstrated this together today, and this message goes out into the world,” she continued.Eralp would be Berlin’s first Left Party mayor, as well as its first mayor with Turkish roots — a meaningful symbolic shift in a city with the largest diaspora Turkish population in the world.“It’s fantastic. It’s so important to have a positive moment and the feeling that we actually can have good news,” Linus, a Left Party member enjoying the party’s election night celebration, told Courthouse News.Eralp primarily campaigned on affordability, a successful message in a city facing increasing inequality and an explosive housing crisis. The Left Party has committed to enforcing a 2021 citywide referendum in favor of expropriating over 200,000 apartments owned by “mega-landlords.”“It’s a really clear signal for an affordable Berlin, and particularly for socializing corporate landlords,” Leonie, another buoyant party member, told Courthouse News. “This just reiterates what Berlin already decided via referendum,” she continued.The Left Party’s campaign proved highly popular among young people and allowed it to siphon off votes from the center-left Greens and Social Democrats. It was also particularly successful at bringing in non-voters. Still, actually taking the mayorship, let alone delivering on campaign promises, will be a challenge.Coalition conundrums in the capital“It’s going to be really difficult for the party to put together a coalition given our ambitious goals,” said Linus. If the Left want to govern, it will have to do so with the Greens, who earned 14%, and the Social Democrats, who earned 12%.Finding common ground with the Social Democrats will prove particularly challenging — the Social Democrats opted to join the CDU as junior partners instead of working with the Left Party and Greens after the last election, and have spoken out against implementing the housing referendum.“I hope we can take this confidence into coalition talks and that we don’t let a party that won half as many votes as us dictate terms,” said Leonie. The only other viable government in Berlin would be a CDU-led “Kenya” coalition — named after the black, red and green colors of the parties involved reflecting Kenya’s flag — featuring the Christian Democrats, Social Democrats and Greens, making the two center-left parties kingmakers in the capital.Carsten Koschmieder, political scientist at Berlin’s Freie Universität, believes forming a Left-led coalition will be difficult, but does think the potential for a progressive government, and Berlin’s relatively low support for the far right, is an important message in Germany.“If you’re unhappy, you don’t have to vote for the fascists. You can vote for a left-wing program; there is actually an alternative,” Koschmieder told Courthouse News.Alternative for Germany keeps rolling in the eastThough not as dominant as results in Saxony-Anhalt earlier this month, the AfD’s 38% is its best-ever showing in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and in addition to heaping pressure on Friedrich Merz, it severely limits options for mainstream parties.The incumbent Social Democrats, who essentially embarked on a two-party race against the far-right and fell short with 35% of the vote, will have to lead a coalition with the Greens and the Left Party in order to avoid a minority government.While that is a tall order in Berlin, negotiations should be relatively rosy in Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern’s capital. The Social Democrats and Left are currently governing partners and have voiced their commitment to keeping the AfD out of power.The evening may prove more decisive for those who failed to enter the state government than those who are primed to run it — the Christian Democrats’ unprecedented failure to earn any representation in parliament may eventually prove the final of many nails in Friedrich Merz’s coffin.Courthouse News reporter Dave Braneck is based in Germany.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads