Far-right AfD becomes Germany's most popular party as Chancellor Merz's approval plummets

BERLIN

Germany's far-right AfD party has overtaken Chancellor Friedrich Merz's Christian Democrats in a new poll released on Tuesday, becoming the country's most popular political party.

According to the RTL/ntv poll, the AfD now has 26% support, up one percentage point from the previous week. Meanwhile, Chancellor Merz's conservative CDU/CSU alliance dropped one point to 24%.

The Social Democratic Party (SPD), Merz's junior coalition partner, remains stagnant at 13% in the polls—a decline of more than three percentage points from their February election performance.

With the governing coalition approaching its 100-day milestone this Wednesday, the poll delivered grim news for the conservative leader and his coalition partners, raising concerns about the government's long-term viability.

Satisfaction with Chancellor Merz's performance has dropped to its lowest point since he was elected in May, with only 29% of respondents expressing satisfaction with his work. Displeasure with the chancellor's performance rose by three percentage points to 67%.

In early June, 43% of respondents were satisfied with Merz's performance, while 49% were dissatisfied.

According to the representative poll, only a slim majority of Germans (52%) believe the current coalition government will survive until the end of the legislative period in 2029. The survey also revealed a significant rise in undecided voters and non-voters, who now account for 25% of the electorate.