BERLIN

Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has nearly tripled its vote share in local elections in North Rhine-Westphalia, the country's most populous state, raising concerns about democratic stability.

According to preliminary results, the anti-immigrant AfD secured 14.5% of votes in city and county councils in Sunday's election, nearly tripling their 5% share from the 2020 local elections. The center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz, maintained its dominant position with 33.3% votes.

"This result must give us pause for thought and certainly cannot let us sleep peacefully. Not even my party, which clearly won this election," said North Rhine-Westphalia's conservative premier Hendrik Wust in a television interview with public broadcaster ARD.

While expressing concern for the rise of AfD, Wust warned against hasty conclusions that the far-right is gaining momentum in western Germany after its earlier successes in former eastern states.

In Sunday's local elections, the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) secured second place with 22.1% of votes. The Greens experienced a sharp decline, winning only 13.5% compared to their 20% share five years ago. The socialist Left Party garnered 5.6%, while the pro-business Free Democratic Party (FDP) received 3.7%.

CDU Secretary General Carsten Linnemann expressed satisfaction with his party's performance. "We are the number one party," he told public broadcaster ARD. Regarding the far-right AfD's strong showing, he emphasized that the CDU still remains "more than twice as large."

Linnemann highlighted the CDU's recent success in reducing illegal migration and suggested Germany adopt Denmark's model, where democratic parties' effective policies on migration, economics, and education have diminished support for populist radical groups.

In many of North Rhine-Westphalia's major cities, mayoral candidates failed to secure sufficient votes, forcing the two leading candidates to face runoff elections on Sept. 28. In cities like Bonn, Cologne, Dusseldorf, and Dortmund, only candidates from democratic parties will compete in these runoffs, as no far-right candidates managed to advance. The far-right candidates qualified for only three runoff elections in Gelsenkirchen, Duisburg, and Hagen, where they will face opponents from the SPD and CDU.

The political leaders of conservative CDU and center-left SPD have signaled that they would support each other's candidates in these runoffs to block AfD victories. SPD regional leader Sarah Philipp told public broadcaster WDR that Social Democrats will back CDU candidates facing AfD opponents.

Conservative premier Hendrik Wüst similarly said: "If an AfD candidate makes it to the runoff against someone from a democratic party, then democrats know what to do."