Germany is looking forward to the federal states of Bavaria and Hesse with excitement. State elections will take place there tomorrow. According to recent surveys, one thing is certain in both countries: the current party of Prime Ministers Markus Söder (CSU) and Boris Rhein (CDU) will continue to be number one.
The CSU in Bavaria can therefore expect 37 percent of the valid votes cast, the CDU in Hesse with 32 percent.
The race for second place will be particularly interesting in both Bavaria and Hesse. In the Free State, according to the latest survey, the Greens, the Free Voters and the Alternative for Germany (AfD) are close together (16, 15 and 14 percent, respectively). In Bavaria, the Christian Social Union is currently governing with the Free Voters. Prime Minister Söder has taken a clear position on the question of coalition partner: he wants to work with the Free Voters and their top candidate Hubert Aiwanger.
In recent weeks he has been accused of being hostile to democracy. He allegedly had anti-Semitic inflammatory leaflets in his school bag 35 years ago.
Federal Minister of the Interior is running
In Hesse, the Greens (they currently govern with the Christian Democrats) got 17 percent in the most recent survey and are on a par with the SPD. The AfD follows closely behind (16 percent).
Interesting detail of this election: the incumbent German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser is running as the Social Democrats’ top candidate. She had announced that she only wanted to return to her home state as Prime Minister.
The third force of the traffic light coalition in the federal government, the FDP, is threatening to miss entry into the state parliament in Bavaria with three percent – in Hesse it could just manage to do so with five percent.
