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☆ Germany's far-right AfD party is finding success on TikTok — as its popularity among young voters grows
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Sophie Kiderlin | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Cardboard stands with the AfD logo lie on the chairs in the Wiesenhalle before the start of the AfD Brandenburg state party conference. Traditionally, young voters are seen as more left-leaning, but the voting data suggests some divergences, with experts pointing to social media and what they describe as online echo chambers. A study published earlier this month showed that over half of those aged 14-29 in Germany use social media to stay updated about news and politics. But Berendsen told CNBC that it is one of the social media platforms where the tunnel-effect can be an issue. An AfD spokesperson confirmed to CNBC that its videos and texts posted on social media are tailored to young people.

Persons: Monika Skolimowska, Infratest Dimap, Eva Berendsen, Anne Frank, Baerbock, Maximilian Krah, TikTok, Berendsen Organizations: Getty, Russia, Anne, CNBC Locations: Hesse, Germany

☆ Two Ukrainian servicemen stabbed to death in Germany, Russian national arrested
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-28 | by ( Josh Pennington | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Two Ukrainian servicemen were stabbed to death at a shopping center in southern Germany Saturday evening, by a suspected Russian national, German and Ukrainian authorities say. Both Ukrainian men were residents of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen and had been in Germany undergoing medical rehabilitation. A 57-year-old suspected Russian national was arrested at his home not far from the scene, according to German authorities. “On April 27, two Ukrainian citizens, men born in 1987 and 2001, were killed by stabbing in Murnau am Stafelsee, Bavaria, Germany, at a local shopping center. “According to preliminary information, the deceased citizens were military personnel undergoing medical rehabilitation in Germany,” the ministry said.

Persons: “, Murnau, ” Organizations: CNN, Partenkirchen, Russian, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Locations: Germany, Russian, Murnau, Garmisch, Stafelsee, Bavaria

☆ Airbnb's new chief business officer shares his top priorities for hosts and travelers
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

As Airbnb's recently appointed chief business officer, Dave Stephenson is playing a crucial role in the company's future growth plans. He's also filling another role that is critical to that growth: an Airbnb host. An avid skier and hiker, Stephenson is quick to share details of the best trails with his guests. Airbnb is also looking to expand its services, making it easier to be a host as well as a guest. That could include helping hosts facilitate check-ins or helping them get the items they need for guests, like linens.

Persons: Airbnb's, Dave Stephenson, He's, Stephenson, Brian Chesky, Chesky, Airbnb Organizations: Airbnb, CBO, Netflix Locations: Ankara, Turkiye, Amazon, Seattle , Washington, that's, Germany, South Korea, Brazil, Bavaria, Washington

☆ Inside Lilium, the German company trying to revolutionize air travel
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | Cristy Garratt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

German aerospace company Lilium wants to revolutionize air travel with its electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) jet. "Revolutionize means make it absolutely zero emission," Lilium CEO Klaus Roewe told CNBC Tech in an interview. "We want to make a regional plane that has a decent transport capacity to have a meaningful effect on CO2 emission reduction." Less than a decade after being founded by four university students, the group is now one of Europe's leading eVTOL companies. Lilium, which is backed by the likes of China's Tencent and Earlybird Venture Capital, has started taking orders from the premium market.

Persons: Klaus Roewe, Lilium, Roewe, China's, Daniel Wiegand, Lilium's, Wiegand Organizations: CNBC Tech, Earlybird Venture, eVTOL Aircraft Locations: Weßling, Bavaria

The world's governments have agreed they want to triple renewable energy by 2030, a goal laid out at the U.N. climate summit in December. Here are the big hurdles to solar, wind and other renewable energy projects:COSTLY CREDITCentral banks in Europe and the U.S. have raised interest rates to combat inflation. Renewables have much higher up-front costs to build wind farms, solar arrays and more, and that borrowing costs money. Germany's southern region of Bavaria, for example, is known for resisting the noise and appearance of wind turbines in its scenic landscape. Installations have lagged in Bavaria and other regions despite the German government's push for more renewable energy after losing affordable Russian natural gas used to heat homes, generate electricity and power factories.

Persons: Todd Moss Organizations: U.S, Renewables, State Department, Energy, Growth Locations: Europe, Germany's, Bavaria, Ghana, U.S, Washington

☆ Why are bidets just now getting popular in America?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-24 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

It took a toilet paper shortage for some to come around to the 18th-century invention. A common reason why bidets aren’t used in the US is that during World War 2, American soldiers saw brothels utilizing bidets. Big Toilet PaperWhen the great toilet paper shortage hit in 2020, many Americans realized there could be another way to clean themselves. Using toilet paper had seemed, somehow, American, with toilet paper jokes a staple in bathroom humor and “TP-ing” a stereotypical rite of passage for teens. With the toilet paper mania, she decided to kill two birds with one stone and splurge on a Tushy.

Persons: bidets, – washlets, “, James Lin, Lin, Miki Agrawal, Toto, “ Gosh, ” Joe, aren’t, Elisabeth of Bavaria, Carl Knoll, Joe, Agrawal, can’t, ” Atieh, ” Derek Rucker, Rucker, Mikaela Koelzer, Koelzer, ” Koelzer, ” Organizations: New, New York CNN, CNN, Carl Knoll Porcelain, Kellogg School of Management Locations: New York, bidetking.com, American, Michigan, France, Europe, East, East Asia, Japan, United States, Carlsbad, Gmunden, Spain, Indian, Illinois, Jordan, Chicago

☆ Basking in his Russian election win, Putin talks about political nemesis Alexei Navalny's 'sad' death for the first time
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin was upbeat after winning a fifth term in power in Russia's presidential election over the weekend. He chose the moment to make his first public remarks on the death of his political nemesis, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, mentioning his name for the first time in years. Navalny's family and supporters accused Putin of ordering Navalny's death. He also used the moment to make his first public comments on Navalny's death, and mentioning his most vocal critic's name for the first time in public in years. Putin won Russian presidential election with 87.97% of the vote, first official results showed Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Alexei Navalny, Putin, Natalia Kolesnikova, —, Laudator Ursula von der Leyen, Bambi, NBC's Keir Simmons, Navalny, Mr Navalny, Navalny's, Maria Pevchikh, airbrushing Organizations: Afp, Getty, Navalny, European Commission, Bavaria Film Studios, NBC, Russian, Moscow Times, Putin's, Ukraine, Reuters, Commission, Anadolu Locations: Russia, Moscow, U.S

☆ Neuschwanstein: US man gets life sentence for Germany rape and murder
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Nadine Schmidt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Berlin CNN —An American man has been sentenced to life in prison for the rape and murder of a tourist and the attempted murder of her friend – both US citizens from Illinois – in a gruesome attack near one of Germany’s most popular tourist sights. A German court convicted the 31-year-old tourist from Michigan, identified as Troy B., for the attack on the two women near Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria. Police officers arrested Troy B. near the scene of the attack. Troy B. attends his sentencing at a court in Kempten, Germany, March 11, 2024. “If it stays that way, our client will definitely have to spend 15 years in Germany before he is extradited.

Persons: Berlin CNN —, –, Troy B, Christoph Schwiebacher, Eva Liu, Kelsey Chang, Liu, Chang, Karl, Josef Hildenbrand, Alexander Stevens Organizations: Berlin CNN, Illinois –, University of Illinois, Prosecutors, Police, Troy Locations: Illinois, Michigan, Neuschwanstein, Bavaria, Kempten, Germany, University of Illinois Urbana, Champaign, German, Straubing, USA, Munich, Europe

The Ver.di service workers' union called for a “warning strike,” a common tactic in German contract negotiations, on Monday. Its deputy chair, Christine Behle, said that “the time has now come to exert more pressure on employers” as talks on new pay contracts for about 90,000 people employed by over 130 local transport operators have failed to make progress. In Berlin, workers with the local transport authority walked off the job until 10 a.m.; in Hamburg, Cologne, Hannover and elsewhere, the strike was to last all day. The dispute centers on demands for better working conditions, such as a shorter working week and extra compensation days for shift and night work. Coinciding contract negotiations in the rail, airport and local transport sectors have made for a frustrating few weeks for German travers and commuters.

Persons: Christine Behle, ”, German travers, Ver.di Organizations: BERLIN, — Locations: Germany, Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Hannover, Bavaria

☆ Germany's Airport Security Staff to Ground Flights in Nationwide Protests
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN (Reuters) - Security staff at some of Germany's biggest airports, including the global hub Frankfurt, walked off the job on Thursday, grounding flights and piling pain on Europe's largest economy. The 24-hour strike, called by labour union Verdi, is the latest in a series of industrial actions that has paralysed the country's transportation sector in recent weeks. Almost 200,000 travellers will be affected by over 1,100 flight cancellations or delays, the German airports association ADV estimated on Wednesday as some of Germany's biggest airports including Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg and Stuttgart said there would be no departures for passengers. Last week, German train drivers had staged their longest railway strike to date following a week-long nationwide protest by German farmers who had blocked the country's roads. On Friday, industrial action is expected to bring public transport to a halt in every federal state except Bavaria.

Persons: Verdi, Ralph Beisel, Wolfgang Pieper, Nette Nöstlinger, Klaus Lauer Organizations: BERLIN, Security, ADV Locations: Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Germany, Bavaria

The demonstrations came in the wake of a report that right-wing extremists recently met to discuss the deportation of millions of immigrants, including some with German citizenship. Some members of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, or AfD, were present at the meeting. Additional protests planned for Sunday in other major German cities, including Berlin, Munich and Cologne, are also expected to draw tens of thousands of people. What started out as relatively small gatherings have grown into protests that, in many cases, are drawing far more participants than organizers expected. The protests also build on growing anxiety over the last year about the AfD’s rising support among the German electorate.

Persons: Germany’s, Martin Sellner, Alice Weidel, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, ” Scholz, ” Friedrich Merz, ”, Thomas Tuchel Organizations: BERLIN, Germany, Police, Hannover, Identitarian, Identitarian Movement, Austrian, Germany’s Greens, “, Christian, Bayern Munich Locations: Germany, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Nuremberg, Hamburg, Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Nazi, Bavaria, Hesse, Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia, Dresden, Tuebingen, Kiel

BERLIN (AP) — A German man accused of forming an armed group to oppose government measures against the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 has been arrested in Portugal, German prosecutors said Tuesday. The 39-year-old man, whose name wasn't released, most recently lived in Bavaria and was charged in June, prosecutors in Koblenz said. He is accused, along with two others, of forming a criminal organization and an armed group named “Paladin” in early 2021, which prosecutors said aimed to act against coronavirus measures. The suspect's whereabouts had been unknown since at least June and he was arrested in Portugal last month, prosecutors said. He is now in pre-extradition custody in Portugal, but it's not yet clear whether and when he will be transferred to Germany.

Persons: ” Organizations: BERLIN, Associated Press Locations: Portugal, Bavaria, Koblenz, Germany

☆ More than 700 flights cancelled as Munich sees heavy snowfall
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-02 | by ( Benjamin Brown | Sophie Tanno | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Around 760 flights were canceled at Munich Airport on Saturday due to heavy snowfall, an airport spokesperson told CNN. Buses, trams, and some train services in Munich were also suspended due to the snow, according to Munich’s public transport company. Munich’s central train station was closed for arrivals, while long-distance services have been suspended entirely, according to Germany’s national railway company Deutsche Bahn. Germany’s regional Süddeutsche Zeitung reported that huge numbers of travellers have been left stranded at Munich’s main station. Bavarian public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk on Saturday reported that the 44 centimetres of snow in Munich was the most snowfall ever recorded in December in the Bavarian state capital since records began in 1933.

Persons: I’ve, “, there’s, Peter Kneffel Organizations: CNN, Munich Airport, Deutsche Bahn . Deutsche Bahn, Zeitung, Getty, Police, Saturday, Bayern Munich, Union Berlin, Bayerischer Rundfunk Locations: Munich, Bavaria, Union, Bavarian

A view of the sign of Signa Holding on their headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 6, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsVIENNA/FRANKFURT, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Property and retail giant Signa declared insolvency on Wednesday after last-ditch attempts to secure fresh funding failed, the biggest casualty so far of Europe's property crash. Signa blamed its problems on external factors affecting its property business and pressure on high-street shopping. Fuelled by low interest rates, billions were funneled into property, which was viewed as stable and safe. Weakness in commercial real estate in the United States as offices remain empty after the pandemic and the struggles of major property developers in China have focused global attention on the sector.

Persons: Leonhard Foeger, Rene Benko, Signa, Switzerland's Julius Baer, Hannes Moesenbacher, Matthias Inverardi, Rachel More, Madeline Chambers, Catherine Evans Organizations: Signa, REUTERS, Rights, Chrysler, Austria's Raiffeisen Bank, Thomson Locations: Vienna, Austria, FRANKFURT, Germany, Switzerland, Hamburg, Bavaria, Hesse, Europe's, United States, China

View of the construction site of the Elbtower building, owned by Rene Benko’s Signa and a Commerzbank subsidiary, in Hamburg Germany, November 2, 2023. On Friday, Signa Real Estate Management filed for insolvency in a local court in Berlin, according to a court filing. The real estate sector was a bedrock of Germany's economy for years, accounting for roughly a fifth of output and one in 10 jobs. Now a sharp rise in rates has put an end to the run, tipping some developers into insolvency as deals freeze and prices fall. Weakness in commercial real estate in the United States as offices remain empty after the pandemic and the struggles of major property developers in China have focused global attention on the sector.

Persons: Rene Benko’s Signa, Fabian Bimmer, Signa, Elliott, Rene Benko, Switzerland's Julius Baer, Hannes Moesenbacher, Matthias Inverardi, John O'Donnell, Miranda Murray, Sharon Singleton, Mark Potter Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Elliott Investment Management, Chrysler, Estate Management, Austria's Raiffeisen Bank, Thomson Locations: Hamburg Germany, Austrian, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, Berlin, Bavaria, Hesse, Hamburg, Europe's, United States, China

And now Ben Hammou faces another blow as the German government moves to end pandemic-era tax breaks for the hospitality industry. The fiscally hawkish FDP party, which has control of the finance ministry in the three-way ruling coalition, backs letting the tax break expire, calculating that it would cost 3.3 billion euros ($3.5 billion) to keep it going in 2024. Many restaurants operate on tight margins, which makes them quite sensitive to tax increases. In Spain, Italy and France, the VAT on restaurants is at 10%, considerably lower than the expected 19% in Germany from 2024. The question is whether German restaurants are still struggling or have recovered well enough from the pandemic to withstand having the tax break removed, according to Tomas Dvorak, senior economist at Oxford Economics.

Persons: Omar Ben Hammou, Ben Hammou, Christian Lindner, Guido Zoellick, Thijs Geijer, Ingrid Hartges, DEHOGA, Steffen Marx, Tomas Dvorak, Maria Martinez, Christian Kraemer, Tanja Daube, Ulrike Heil, Belen Carreno, Giselda Vagnoni, Thomas Leigh, Matthias Williams, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Restaurant Association, ING, Reuters, Oxford Economics, Thomson Locations: Bavaria, BERLIN, Berlin, Russia, Ukraine, COVID, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Munich, Madrid, Rome, Paris

☆ Far-Right German Legislator Arrested After 'Sieg Heil' Salutes Heard
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN (Reuters) - A legislator with the far-right Alternative for Germany party was arrested on Monday on charges including displaying forbidden totalitarian symbols, with neighbours of his fraternity complaining of often hearing the Nazi "Sieg Heil" victory salute. Newly elected Daniel Halemba, 22, is due to take up his seat in the Bavarian regional parliament on Thursday. He is a member of the Teutonia Prague student fraternity, whose premises were raided by police in September. The party, second in polls in several eastern states, achieved record results in the western states of Bavaria and Hesse on Oct. 8. Halemba, who joined the fraternity as a law student in Wuerzburg, has named Bjoern Hoecke, leader of the AfD's far-right wing, as his political role model.

Persons: Daniel Halemba, Halemba, Maximilian Krah, Hoecke, Thomas Escritt, Rachel More, Nick Macfie Organizations: BERLIN, Bavarian Locations: Germany, Prague, Bavaria, Hesse, Wuerzburg

☆ People are grieving the 'death' of their AI companions after a chatbot app abruptly shut down
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Rob Price | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

A 32-year-old food industry worker in eastern Texas who asked to be identified by her Reddit username, Hilary Coyote, first heard about AI chatbot companions in June. She turned to Reddit's community of Soulmate users for support, and was encouraged to go back to the app and Allur. (EvolveAI and SimplyAI's now-shuttered Soulmate app has no relation to "Soulmate AI: Your AI Companion," another app that appears in smartphone app stores and was developed by Turing App Lab.) Even if Ahoy Labs closed down, Faraday users' chatbots would not be affected. Read more: App, Lover, Muse: Inside a 47-year-old Minnesota man's three-year relationship with an AI chatbot.

Persons: Mike Hepp, Sam, Mike, wile, peppering, he'd, Soulmate, Replika, There's, Hilary Coyote, Allur, Hilary, she'd, Chris, chatbots, —, Julia, Soulmate's userbase, Jorge Ilas, SimplyAI's, She'd, Faraday, Hilary somberly, Sam —, Kindroid Organizations: YouTube, SimplyAI, Turing, Stanford Locations: Michigan, Soulmate, Replika, Florida, Chai, Texas, Bavaria, Germany, Reddit, Los Angeles, Minnesota

☆ Neanderthals hunted cave lions at least 48,000 years ago, and feasted on their meat, ancient bones reveal
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Neanderthals skillfully hunted giant cave lions, a study showed for the first time. AdvertisementAdvertisementNeanderthals hunted cave lions with wooden spears and feasted on their meat at least 48,000 years ago, according to a study of ancient bones. But they didn't just target cave lions for sustenance. Cave lion bones are shown next to a replica spear Volker Minkus. The study suggests the hunt was designed "to get something on a social level, some social rewards," he said.

Persons: —, Gabriele Russo, Russo, Julio Lacerda, Volker Minkus, it's, It's Organizations: Service Locations: Germany, Bavaria, Eurasia, Siegsdorf, Croatian, Africa

☆ Berlin needs to get its act together after state election results, former Siemens CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Hannah Ward-Glenton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Joe Kaeser delivers a speech during the Siemens Annual Shareholders' Meeting on February 3, 2021 in Munich, Germany. Pool | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesThe results of two state elections in Germany sent "a clear message" to Berlin that the government needs "to get their act together," Joe Kaeser, chairman of the Supervisory Board at Siemens Energy, told CNBC. The execution I think is something which has potential for improvement," Kaeser, the former CEO of Siemens, said in an interview with CNBC's Annette Weisbach Tuesday. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party gained votes in the two key regions. The AfD's candidate in Hesse, Robert Lambrou, had anticipated that voters would swing toward his party, saying that people were "heavily disappointed by the policy of the government."

Persons: Joe Kaeser, CNBC's Annette Weisbach, Angela Merkel's, Robert Lambrou, Kristalina Georgieva Organizations: Siemens, Getty, Board, Siemens Energy, CNBC, Conservative, Christian Democratic Union, CDU, Christian Social Union, Social Democrats, Greens, Free Democrats, IMF Locations: Munich, Germany, Berlin, Hesse, Bavaria, Germany's

☆ German voters send ominous message to Brussels
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Oct 9 (Reuters Breakingviews) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s resounding defeat in key local elections on Sunday will be as traumatic in Brussels as in Berlin. Voters dealt a sharp blow to all three parties in Scholz’s centre-left executive. The victory of conservative opposition party CDU came together with a strong showing of far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), who won 15% of the votes in the populous state of Bavaria and 18% in Hesse. In Berlin, divisions on the pace and cost of the green transition between the Green Party and the liberal FDP, whose leader Christian Lindner is the coalition’s finance minister, have already led to a watering down of a planned boiler ban from 2024. In Brussels, a German government preoccupied with its domestic travails may be unable to rally other member states around the sort of compromise proposals the EU needs to clinch some key deals.

Persons: Olaf Scholz’s, Christian Lindner, Scholz, Pierre Briancon, Sandoz, Lisa Jucca, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Voters, Social Democrats, Greens, European Union, Green Party, X, Alstom, Brookfield, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Berlin, Scholz’s, Bavaria, Hesse, Germany, France, EU

CNN —The German states of Bavaria and Hesse vote in regional elections on Sunday, in what is widely being seen as a test-case for Germany’s shifting political landscape. In Hesse – home to Frankfurt, Germany’s financial hub – dissatisfaction with Germany’s federal government threatens to deliver a blow to Scholz’s coalition. German flags are carried at an AfD election campaign event. Bavarian Premier Söder chose not to dismiss Aiwanger following the allegations, amid calls from across Germany’s political spectrum for the economy minister’s resignation. Hesse, which was formerly a stronghold for the SPD, is currently governed by the CDU in coalition with the Greens.

Persons: Hesse –, Martin Schutt, shockwaves, of Bavaria, Markus Söder, Angela Merkel, Kirill Kudryavtsev, Charlotte Knoblauch, Katrin, Ebner Steiner, AfD’s, ” Steiner, ”, Hubert Aiwanger, Aiwanger, ” Hubert Aiwanger, Sven Hoppe, Söder, Thomas Kreuzer, Chancellor Scholz’s, Nancy Faeser, Kreuzer, “, ” Kreuzer, Faese, Faeser, Der Organizations: CNN, Social Democratic Party, SPD, Free Democratic Party, Greens, Scholz’s SPD, Bavaria, Christian Social Union, CSU, Christian Democratic Union, CDU, Free Voters, Getty, INSA, New, Central Council of, Germany’s Süddeutesche Zeitung, Zeitung, FW, Bavarian, Greens . Center, ”, Der Spiegel, Interior Ministry Locations: Bavaria, Hesse, Germany, –, Frankfurt, Germany’s, AFP, Saxony, Bavarian, Munich, “, Germany’s Süddeutesche

☆ Voters in Hesse, Bavaria Seen Dealing Mid-Term Blow to Scholz's Coalition
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Sarah MarshBERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's opposition conservatives are expected to win another term in the Hesse and Bavaria state elections on Sunday, seen dealing a blow to Chancellor Olaf Scholz's center-left coalition and attesting to the rise of the far-right. So too has frustration with infighting in Scholz's heterogeneous three-way coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) mid-way through its term. "The coalition is suffering the mid-term blues and must reckon with losses," said Stefan Marschall, political scientist at the University of Duesseldorf. "The FDP in particular must reckon with falling out of both state parliaments which could bring greater tensions into the coalition. More striking is the fact the populist Free Voters (FW) party, which governs Bavaria in coalition with the CSU, has seen a bump in poll support of several percentage points to 15% since being swept up in an anti-semitic scandal.

Persons: Sarah Marsh BERLIN, Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Stefan Marschall, Nancy Faeser, Sarah Marsh, Nick Macfie Organizations: Social Democrats, Greens, Free Democrats, University of Duesseldorf, Christian Social Union, CSU, Christian Democrats, CDU, Free Voters, FW, SPD, ARD Locations: Hesse, Bavaria, Germany, Bavarian

The FDP looked on track to fail to reach the 5% threshold to enter parliament in Bavaria, and possibly Hesse too. They and the AfD were the only parties to make gains in the Bavaria election. Still, coalition parties were likely to continue to follow increasingly separate paths to focus on issues relevant to their core electorate in response to the bad results, he said, while all taking a tougher stance on migration. "We must in the future better communicate SPD projects and be more visible," SPD lawmaker Sebastian Roloff told German outlet Handelsblatt. Reporting by Sarah Marsh; Editing by Nick Macfie, Ros Russell and Mark PorterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Scholz, Thomas Kemmerich, Jens Spahn, Spahn, Nancy Faeser, Markus Soeder, Philipp Koeker, Sebastian Roloff, Sarah Marsh, Nick Macfie, Ros Russell, Mark Porter Organizations: Social Democrats, Greens, Free Democrats, Christian Democrats, CDU, ARD, Christian Social Union, CSU, DRUBBING, Free Voters, University of Hanover, Thomson Locations: Hesse, Bavaria, BERLIN, Germany, Ukraine, Frankfurt

☆ Hesse, Bavaria votes highlight discontent with Scholz's government, exit polls show
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] Hesse State Premier Boris Rhein of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party gestures after the first exit polls for the Hesse state elections were published, in Wiesbaden, Germany, October 8, 2023. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach Acquire Licensing RightsBERLIN, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Germany's opposition conservatives were on track to win state elections in Hesse and Bavaria on Sunday, according to exit polls by state broadcaster ARD, highlighting discontent with the Chancellor Olaf Scholz's centre-left federal government. In Hesse, the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) looked set to take 35.5% of the vote compared to 16% for Scholz's Social Democrats, dealing a personal blow to Interior Minister Nancy Faeser who ran as the SPD's lead candidate in the state. The SPD, which is traditionally weak in Bavaria, trailed with 8.5% of the vote. Meanwhile the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) made gains, rising to 16% in Hesse and 15% in Bavaria compared to 13.1% and 11.6% respectively in 2018.

Persons: Hesse State Premier Boris Rhein, Kai Pfaffenbach, Olaf Scholz's, Nancy Faeser, CDU's, Sarah Marsh, Thomas Escritt Organizations: Hesse State Premier, Christian Democratic Union, CDU, REUTERS, Rights, ARD, Christian Democrats, Scholz's Social Democrats, Christian Social Union, CSU, Free Voters, SPD, Greens, Free Democrats, Thomson Locations: Hesse, Wiesbaden, Germany, Bavaria

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