The European Union faces calls to allow Spanish tourists to vacation in Portugal while the UK and Sweden are considering a reciprocal arrangement. - Initial findings suggest a significant decline for the Greens in the European elections.
In the recent European election held in Baden-Württemberg, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) emerged as the clear winner, gathering 32.0% of the votes. Meanwhile, the Greens suffered a substantial blow, decreasing to third place with only 13.8% of the votes. The AfD remained the second most dominant party with 14.7% of the votes, despite facing negative headlines regarding their links to Russia and China.
The SPD secured 11.6% of the votes, and the FDP bagged 6.8%. Interestingly, the newly formed party Alliance Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) made its way from zero to 4.5% in the electoral race.
Voter turnout in Baden-Württemberg witnessed a slight increase this year, with 66.4% of the residents casting their ballots as per the data from the Statistical State Office. Five years ago, the number of voters was 64.0%.
In the 2019 European election, the CDU had managed to secure the first position in the state with 30.8% of the votes, followed by the Greens with 23.3%. The SPD gained 13.3% of the votes, AfD took home 10%, and the FDP received 6.8%.
Across Germany, a total of around 7.8 million citizens had the right to vote in the European election. According to the Statistical State Office, approximately 830,000 individuals from other EU countries residing in the southwest had the opportunity to choose between voting in Germany or their home country.
The CDU bagged the win in the European election nationwide. According to Manuel Hagel, State leader of the CDU, the CDU's policies have been endorsed by the public: "The people have trust in the CDU, and they've reinforced our commitment to the middle class." Hagel noted that the CDU stands for stability, reason, and cohesion, appeal that won them the election.
CDU's General Secretary, Nina Warken, weighed in even more strongly: "CDU Baden-Württemberg did well and is back." Preliminary projections revealed that the CDU led the European election with a significant margin over the AfD while the Greens suffered losses across the country.
Michael Bloss, the Green candidate for Baden-Württemberg, opined that the election primarily revolved around issues stemming from federal politics. "We need to carefully evaluate this outcome in the coming weeks. For the Greens, the significant right-wing shift in Europe over the next five years poses the most significant challenge," he said. Bloss emphasized their willingness to join the center and prevent the inclusion of right-wing and anti-European parties in power.
Baden-Württemberg's Finance Minister Danyal Bayaz (Greens) urged his party to undertake an honest analysis to regain public trust. "Future success will only come when our setbacks are thoroughly scrutinized," he remarked before the final results were announced in the state. Bayaz felt unhappy with the election result and urged the Greens to rebuild their image as a pragmatic party that people would trust to govern the country.
Anton Baron, the chairperson of the AfD in the Baden-Württemberg state parliament, perceived the outcome as a validation of the AfD's policies. "The citizens have not been misled." He dismissed the media campaigns against the AfD in the past year as "empty talk," adding that voters exclusively cared about real politics. "AfD policies resonate with people," said Baron. "We demonstrate a less centralized EU, more sovereignty for our country, and significantly less migration. This will appeal to residents in Baden-Württemberg over time."
Andreas Stoch, the SPD state leader, described his party's performance in the election as bitter and disappointing, urging repercussions. "The SPD must no longer allow itself to be continuously drawn into bitter quarrels that overshadow our government's accomplishments," Stoch implied, referring to federal politics. "Our party must show that it deserves a leadership position in the federal government. We must make it evident that we're committed to the politics we're implementing and planning for Germany. Let's hope others have taken note of this signal."
Hans-Ulrich Rühlke, the FDP's parliamentary group leader in Baden-Württemberg, expressed his satisfaction with their performance. "Despite Berlin's traffic light, we've nearly maintained our strength as Liberals in Baden-Württemberg," he remarked. "The Greens in Baden-Württemberg are taking a hit - even more than the national average. This clearly demonstrates that the Greens' hour in Baden-Württemberg has ended." According to Rühlke, the Liberals are positioning themselves for a bourgeois coalition government in Baden-Württemberg by 2026.
Information about the European election results from the Ministry of the Interior:
Checking in on the European elections 2019!
The State Statistical Office of Baden-Württemberg has whipped up a nifty dashboard for us to glance at the results.
Now let's get to it!
