BERLIN (AP) — An exit poll points to a victory for Chancellor Angela Merkel's party in a state election in western Germany — and a disastrous performance for her partners in the national government.
Merkel’s Christian Democrats were fighting to preserve their 12-year hold on the governor’s office in Saarland Sunday. It’s the first of three state elections this year.
An ARD television exit poll showed Merkel’s party in the lead — more than four points ahead of Germany’s main opposition Social Democrats.
It showed the pro-market Free Democrats — Merkel’s struggling partners in the national government — slumping far below the 5 percent support needed to win seats in the state legislature.
The exit poll shows the upstart Pirate Party entering its second state parliament with 8 percent support.
