Five days before regional state elections in the
German states of Brandenburg and Saxony, the far-right Alternative
for Germany (AfD) is set to go head-to-head with the country's two
main political parties.
In Brandenburg, the eastern state that surrounds the German capital,
the AfD and the ruling Social Democrats (SPD) are both polling at 21
per cent, according to a poll published Tuesday by German daily Bild
and conducted by the opinion research institute Insa.
Both parties have made gains in the last two months.
In Saxony, the centre-right Christian Democrats are four percentage
points ahead of the AfD. The poll has the CDU polling at 29 per cent,
and the AfD at 25 per cent.
When looking at the remaining political parties in the two eastern
states, the CDU has gone down in popularity in Brandenburg, with 17
per cent.
The hard-left Die Linke (The Left) and Greens have 15 per
cent and 14 per cent respectively, according to the poll.
This would mean that Brandenburg's current coalition between the SPD
and Die Linke would not be able to form a new government.
In Saxony, the SPD is polling at an abysmal 8 per cent, behind Die
Linke and the Greens, which have 15 and 11 per cent each.
This would mean that Saxony's ruling coalition between the CDU and
SPD would also no longer be able to form a government.
Party co-leader of the parliamentary group of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) far-right party Alexander Gauland as he speaks during an election campaign event.