Change in government in Rhineland-Palatinate

Mainz (dpa) – The closely watched elections in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate had very different outcomes for the two partners in Germany’s government coalition: after 35 years of governments led by the Social Democrats (SPD), the Christian Democrats (CDU) are now the strongest party in Rhineland-Palatinate, having won 31 percent of the vote. Under former state premier Alexander Schweitzer, the SPD saw its share plunge to 25.9 percent - its worst performance in a state-level election in Rhineland-Palatinate.

The CDU’s Gordon Schnieder, whose election campaign focused on education, health and the economy, is thus likely to be the state’s new premier. Schnieder distanced himself clearly from the AfD, which came third with 19.5 percent of the vote. The Greens (7.9 percent) were the fourth party to win seats in the Landtag, the state parliament. The CDU and SPD are expected to form a grand coalition, led by Schnieder.