East German state votes in final test before election to decide who replaces Merkel By Reuters

WITTENBERG, Germany (Reuters) – The eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt started voting on Sunday in the last test of public opinion before September’s national election, one which could deal a blow to conservative Armin Laschet’s hopes of succeeding Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Surveys in the state show a small lead for the Christian Democrats (CDU) of Laschet and Merkel, but the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) was running just one percentage point behind in the final poll published on Friday.

Casting his vote, conservative state premier Reiner Haseloff said he had done all he could to persuade voters in the relatively poor region not to turn to the far-right.

“I’ve done everything necessary and possible to persuade people that we need stability and a democratic centre,” he told reporters in his home town of Wittenberg, where in 1517 Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses critical of the Pope to a church door, thereby igniting the Protestant Reformation.

Though most polls give the CDU a more comfortable lead, an AfD victory could deal a potentially crippling blow to the centrist Laschet’s electoral hopes, emboldening those on his party’s right who want a decisive break from the Merkel years.

Merkel, in power since 2005, is stepping down after the federal election, and senior CDU officials concede that it will be tough to retain their party’s appeal to voters after 16 years in charge.

National polls show the surging Greens almost tied with the CDU, with both holding around a quarter of the vote, lending the poll in Saxony-Anhalt, a sparsely populated state of just 2.2 million, an outsized significance.

The AfD typically performs better in the former communist east, where the economy is weaker than in the west. Its strength in Saxony-Anhalt has already focused debate on the CDU’s relations with the political right.

Disclaimer: Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. All CFDs (stocks, indexes, futures) and Forex prices are not provided by exchanges but rather by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual market price, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Therefore Fusion Media doesn`t bear any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this data.

Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.