Brief by Shorts91 Newsdesk / 02:48am on 21 Sep 2026,Monday International
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called Sunday's state election results a "disaster" for his Christian Democratic Union (CDU), but said he will not step down. Exit polls in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern showed the CDU falling below the 5% threshold needed to stay in parliament. The far-right AfD led with about 38%, ahead of the centre-left SPD on 36%. In Berlin, the CDU was projected at 20%, behind Die Linke on nearly 26%. Speaking at party headquarters, Merz said "the reforms have to come" and promised to push on with economic, tax and welfare changes. The vote comes two weeks after the CDU's support halved in Saxony-Anhalt. (PC: BBC)
