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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

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailHow this 32-year-old sold $400,000 worth of cheese in 2023Caroline Hesse, 32, is the founder and CEO of C. Hesse Cheese, a wholesale cheese distribution company in New York City. She sells cheese to restaurants, cheese shops, catering companies and direct to consumers. In 2023, her business brought in $400,000.

Persons: Caroline Hesse, Hesse Locations: New York City

☆ 32-year-old in Brooklyn brought in $400,000 last year selling cheese
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-15 | by ( Nicolas Vega | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

As a little girl, Caroline Hesse would practice writing her name and get upset that it could be shortened to C. Hesse. "I didn't want to be the weird cheese girl." Twenty-five years later, Hesse proudly says she's grown from the "weird cheese girl" to the "the weird cheese woman." That's because the 32-year-old spends her days in a Brooklyn warehouse operating her very own cheese mongering business: C. Hesse Cheese. Hesse says she's not a traditional cheesemonger because she doesn't have a brick-and-mortar cheese shop.

Persons: Caroline Hesse, Hesse, she's, Hesse Cheese Organizations: CNBC Locations: Hesse, Brooklyn, New York City, Florida , Texas, New Mexico

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

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

☆ Henry Kissinger, the towering American diplomat, dies at age 100
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Marty Steinberg | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +25 min

President Gerald Ford (left) and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger talk together in the Oval Office, February 19, 1975. In his 2001 book "The Trial of Henry Kissinger," social critic Christopher Hitchens called him a war criminal. North Vietnam's Le Duc Tho (left) and US National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger at the Paris peace talks, January 1973. Chairman Zedong of the People's Republic of China meets U. S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on Nov. 12, 1973. On a helicopter during the period of shuttle diplomacy in the Middle East, Henry Kissinger talks to his wife, Nancy.

Persons: Henry Kissinger, —, Richard Nixon's, Kissinger, Richard Nixon, Richard Corkery, Duc Tho, Gerald Ford, Benjamin E, Ford, Warren Burger, Kissinger's, Paula, Gene, Forte, Seymour M, Hersh bashed Kissinger, Walter Isaacson's, Christopher Hitchens, Greg Grandin, Niall Ferguson, Kant, Clausewitz, Bismarck, Barry Gewen, Gewen, Elizabeth Holmes, Nixon, George Shultz, Holmes, Heinz Alfred Kissinger, Louis, Walter, Hitler, Kissingers, Fritz Kraemer, William Yandell Elliott, Spengler, Toynbee, Metternich, Castlereagh, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Mike Wallace, Wallace, Kennedy, Johnson, Republican Nelson Rockefeller, George Romney, Hubert Humphrey, Democratic Sen, George McGovern, McGovern, Nguyen Van Thieu, Reg Lancaster, Tho, Thieu, Mao, Gen, Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan, Nicolae Ceausescu, Zhou Enlai, Leonid Brezhnev, Andrei Gromyko, Dirck, Sen, Henry Jackson, Charles Vanik, Brezhnev, Spiro Agnew, Archibald Cox, Cox, Robert Bork, White, Alexander Haig, Anwar Sadat, David Hume Kennerly, Marxist Salvador Allende Gossens, Fidel Castro's, Martin Bernetti, Allende, Augusto Pinochet Ugarte, Pinochet, Ann Fleischer, Elizabeth, David, Nancy Maginnes, Rockefeller, Jill St, John, Candice Bergen, Shirley MacLaine, Liv Ullman, Diane Sawyer, , Napoleon, Nancy, David Rubinger, Maginnes, Moshe Dayan, Robert Dallek, Nixon's, Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein, Paula Kissinger, Brooks Kraft Organizations: Gould, Kissinger Associates, National Security, Waldorf, Astoria, Richard Corkery | New York Daily, Forte, Soviets, State, Chief, New York, Theranos Inc, Economic, Nuremberg, George Washington High School, City College of New, Army, 84th Infantry Division, U.S ., Hesse . Harvard, Harvard, Confluence, Foreign, Eisenhower, Republican, Republican National Convention, Rockefeller and Michigan Gov, Democratic, District of Columbia, US National Security, Getty, Paris Peace, North, Nationalist, China, Bettmann, East Pakistan, of, U.S, Soviet Union ., Ballistic, Soviet, Washington, Egyptian Third Army, Department, West, Marxist, Museum, AFP, CIA, Israeli, Southern California Quaker, White, Partners, Power Locations: New York City, U.S, Connecticut, Richard Corkery | New, United States, Vietnam, Saigon, Viet, Soviet Union, Communist China, Israel, Egypt, Syria, Chile, Pakistan, Theranos, Ukraine, Russia, Davos, Switzerland, Fuerth, Germany, Bavarian, American, Nazi Germany, London, New York, City College of New York, Ahlem, Hanover, German, Krefeld, Hesse, Cambodia, Massachusetts, Haiphong, Paris, North, China, Washington, Taiwan, People's Republic of China, Beijing, Moscow, India, East, Bangladesh, Shanghai, USSR, Soviet, Kremlin, Dirck Halstead, Ohio, Saudi, Japan, Sinai, Alexandria, Cairo, Suez, Americas, Santiago, Cuba, Chilean, America, Europe, Virginia, Southern California

☆ German authorities urge people to stay home amid deadly winter weather
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] People walk at the park after snowfall on the grounds of the Charlottenburg Castle in Berlin, Germany, November 28, 2023. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch Acquire Licensing RightsNov 28 (Reuters) - Authorities in western Germany on Tuesday urged residents to stay home, warning of life-threatening danger, after a burst of winter weather led to hazardous roads, leaving two people dead. The sudden onset of winter led to several accidents and people being trapped in their vehicles due to slippery roads and fallen branches caused by snowfall in many parts of Germany. In Rheingau-Taunus district in the west of Hesse, 100 people were evacuated from their vehicles near Eltville-Martinsthal, while 70 people were trapped on the road near Linienbad. The German Meteorological Service (DWD) forecasts snow and sleet again in many federal states today, adding that the weather will persist in the coming days.

Persons: Fabrizio Bensch, Amir Orusov, Miranda Murray Organizations: REUTERS, Schwaebisch, German Meteorological Service, Thomson Locations: Charlottenburg, Berlin, Germany, Baden, Aalen, Denzerheide, Rhineland, Palatinate, Hesse, Eltville, Linienbad

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

As Open AI employees celebrated the return of CEO Sam Altman with a five-alarm office party , OpenAI software engineer Steven Heidel was busy publicly rebuffing overtures from Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff. Heidel was one of more than 700 OpenAI employees who's threatened exodus halted a would-be mutiny at one of Silicon Valley's most important AI companies. He was previously a scientist at Facebook AI Research and worked as a member of Google Brain under supervision of Prof. Geoffrey Hinton and Ilya Sutskever. Alec Radford: Radford was hired in 2016 from a small AI company he founded in his dorm room. Tao Xu : technical staff, worked on GPT4 and WhisperChristine McLeavey : technical staff, with contributions to music-related productsChristina Kim : technical staffChristopher Hesse : technical staffHeewoo Jun : technical staff, researchAlex Nichol : technical staff, researchWilliam Fedus: technical staff, researchIlge Akkaya: technical staff, researchVineet Kosaraju : technical staff, researchHenrique Ponde de Oliveira Pinto : technical staffAditya Ramesh : technical staff, developed DALL-E and DALL-E 2Prafulla Dhariwal : research scientistHunter Lightman : technical staffHarrison Edwards : research scientistYura Burda : machine language researcherTyna Eloundou : technical staff, researchPamela Mishkin : researcherCasey Chu : researcherDavid Dohan : technical staff, researchAidan Clark : researcherRaul Puri : research scientistLeo Gao : technical staff, researchYang Song : technical staff, researchGiambattista ParascandoloTodor Markov : Machine learning researcherNick Ryder : technical staff

Persons: Sam Altman, Steven Heidel, Marc Benioff, Heidel, Altman, Mira Murati, Murati, Brad Lightcap, Lightcap, Jason Kwon, Kwon, Wojciech Zaremba, Geoffrey Hinton, Ilya Sutskever, Alec Radford, Radford, OpenAI, Peter Welinder, He's, Github Copilot, Anna Makanju, Andrej Karpathy, OpenAI's, Michael Petrov, Petrov, Greg [ Brockman, Miles Brundage, Brundage, John Schulman OpenAI, Srinivas Narayanan, Scott Grey, Grey, Bob McGrew, Research Che Chang, Lillian Weng, Safety Systems Mark Chen, Frontiers Research Barret Zoph, Peter Deng, Jan Leike Evan Morikawa Steven Heidel Jong Wook Kim, Tao Xu, Christine McLeavey, Christina Kim, Christopher Hesse, Heewoo, Alex Nichol, William Fedus, Henrique Ponde de Oliveira Pinto, Aditya Ramesh, Hunter Lightman, Harrison Edwards, Yura, Tyna, Pamela Mishkin, Casey Chu, David Dohan, Aidan Clark, Raul Puri, Leo Gao, Yang, Giambattista Parascandolo Todor Markov, Nick Ryder Organizations: Business, BI, OpenAI, Khosla Ventures, Facebook, Research, Google, Tesla, U.S . Department of Energy, Oxford University, Safety Systems, Frontiers Research Locations: Albania, Canada, OpenAI

☆ Germany Arrests Suspected Antisemite Who Threatened Killings -Police
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN (Reuters) - German police have arrested an 18-year-old man on suspicion of planning violence endangering the state after he threatened to kill people in online posts and posted right-wing extremist and antisemitic content, officials said on Monday. Police in the western state of Hesse searched the apartment of the suspect last Wednesday and seized computers, arms and ammunition, the State Office of Criminal Investigation and the public prosecutor's office in Frankfurt said in a statement. The suspect had repeatedly published posts online in which he threatened to kill people for political reasons, it said. Several months of investigation had revealed the suspect's "consolidated violent, anti-Semitic and right-wing extremist attitude" according to the Hesse state authorities. Germany has stepped up vigilance for any indication of antisemitic violence in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by militants from Gaza's ruling Islamist group Hamas.

Persons: Israel's, Ferenc Gaal, Matthias Williams, Mark Heinrich Organizations: BERLIN, Monday . Police, State, Criminal Investigation, Hamas Locations: Hesse, Frankfurt, Germany, Israel, Gaza, Nazi

The meeting was aimed at garnering state leaders' support for such moves and addressing local authorities' complaints that public coffers and infrastructure are overburdened. The leader of the central state of Hesse put the total volume of aid at 3.5 billion euros. "Our shared goal is to push back irregular migration," said Scholz, after describing the agreement as a "historic moment." Some 230,000 people requested asylum in Germany in the first nine months of this year, more than in the full year 2022. His government has also agreed changes to existing rules to enable asylum seekers to enter the labour force more rapidly and to punish human traffickers with longer prison sentences.

Persons: Olaf Scholz, Hesse Boris Rhein, Lower Saxony Stephan Weil, Angela Merkel, Scholz, Sarah Marsh, Andreas Rinke, Miranda Murray, Rachel More, Barbara Lewis, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Lower, REUTERS, European Union, Thomson Locations: Hesse, Lower Saxony, Germany, Berlin, BERLIN, Russia, Scholz's

☆ 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

Oct 26(Reuters) - Oct 26 (Reuters) - German chip equipment supplier Siltronic improved its sales outlook on Thursday based on stronger revenue expected in the fourth quarter, forecasting a less severe slump this year than previously feared. The company now expects sales to drop by up to 17% this year, versus a previously forecast fall of up to 19%. The provider of silicon wafers for the semiconductor industry reported a 26% drop in its third-quarter sales to 349 million euros ($368 million). "Siltronic delivered a good Q3 beating consensus estimates across the board despite the continued demand weakness as a result of the inventory correction at semi-manufacturers", says Jefferies' analyst Constantin Hesse. Despite the weakened demand, Q4 sales are expected to be better on a quarterly basis indicating a potential low point in Q3, he added.

Persons: Siltronic, Jefferies, Constantin Hesse, Paolo Laudani, Rachel More, Toby Chopra Organizations: Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Gdansk

☆ German interior minister supports deportation of Hamas supporters
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Germany's Interior Minister and Social Democratic Party (SPD) top candidate for the Hesse state election Nancy Faeser gestures as she attends a press conference at party's headquarters in Berlin, Germany, October 9, 2023. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBERLIN, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Germany's interior minister said on Friday Hamas supporters should be deported from the country where possible, and authorities would keep a close eye on potential threats following the Palestinian militant group's attack on Israel. "If we are able to deport Hamas supporters, we must do this," Nancy Faeser said following talks with officials at the Federal Criminal Police Office. At the same time members of Germany's large Palestinian community have said their voices are being silenced by demonstration bans. Faeser appealed to citizens to alert authorities of any "propaganda" supporting Hamas.

Persons: Nancy, Fabrizio Bensch, Nancy Faeser, Faeser, Rachel More, Matthias Williams, Deborah Kyvrikosaios Organizations: Social Democratic Party, REUTERS, Rights, Federal Criminal Police, Thomson Locations: Hesse, Berlin, Germany, Israel, Brussels, Munich

☆ 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

☆ Germany's conservatives set to win state elections with far-right making gains
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( Hannah Ward-Glenton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Photo: Arne Dedert/dpa (Photo by Arne Dedert/picture alliance via Getty Images)Germany's conservative opposition was slated to win two state elections while the far-right gained ground on Sunday, exit polls showed, halfway into the government of social democratic Chancellor Olaf Scholz. The two states were led by the main opposition Union alliance that reunites the Christian Social Union party and the Christian Democratic Union. In Hesse, theBoris Rhein's CDU had led as part of a coalition with the Greens — and was set to win 35.5% of votes, exit polls showed. Here, too, AfD strengthened its presence, from 13.1% of votes previously to 16% on Sunday. The ruling Social Democratic Party is expected to gain 16% in Hesse and 8.5% in Bavaria.

Persons: Arne Dedert, Olaf Scholz, —, theBoris Rhein's, Friedrich Merz, Hesse, Robert Lambrou Organizations: Getty, Union, Christian Social Union, Christian Democratic Union, ARD, CSU —, Free, Greens, Google, Social Democratic Party, CNBC Locations: Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany, Bavaria, Munich

☆ Hesse, Bavaria Votes Highlight Discontent With Scholz's Government Exit Polls
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( Oct. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN (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. In Bavaria, CDU's sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU) looked set to take 37% of the vote - its worst result since 1950 albeit likely enough to continue its coalition with the populist Free Voters on 14%. 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: Olaf Scholz's, Nancy Faeser, CDU's, Sarah Marsh, Thomas Escritt Organizations: BERLIN, ARD, Christian Democrats, CDU, Scholz's Social Democrats, Christian Social Union, CSU, Free Voters, SPD, Greens, Free Democrats Locations: Hesse, Bavaria, Germany

☆ 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

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

BERLIN, Oct 8 (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: Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Stefan Marschall, Nancy Faeser, Sarah Marsh, Nick Macfie 私 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

Both states are led by the country's main opposition Union bloc, made up of the Christian Democratic Union and the Bavaria-only Christian Social Union. In Hesse, they give the CDU a double-digit lead in a three-way contest for the governor's office among the conservative party, Scholz's center-left Social Democrats and the environmentalist Greens. Scholz’s government also faces intense pressure to reduce the number of migrants arriving, a major issue in the run-up to the elections. Green challenger Tarek Al-Wazir, currently the deputy governor to conservative incumbent Boris Rhein, also faces an uphill struggle. Soeder is widely considered a potential candidate to challenge Scholz in 2025, although he has denied such ambitions.

Persons: Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Scholz, won’t, —, Karl, Rudolf Korte, Nancy Faeser, Tarek Al, Wazir, Boris Rhein, Markus Soeder, Soeder, Hubert Aiwanger, Aiwanger — Organizations: BERLIN, Sunday, Union, Christian Democratic Union, Christian Social Union, CSU, CDU, Social Democrats, environmentalist Greens, Germany, Greens, Free, Welt, Sonntag, ” Voters, Free Democrats, Free Voters Locations: Bavaria, Hesse, Frankfurt, Scholz's

☆ 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

☆ Two German state elections expected to bring wins for conservative national opposition
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Both states are led by the country's main opposition Union bloc, made up of the Christian Democratic Union and the Bavaria-only Christian Social Union. In Hesse, they give the CDU a double-digit lead in a three-way contest for the governor's office among the conservative party, Scholz's center-left Social Democrats and the environmentalist Greens. Scholz's government also faces intense pressure to reduce the number of migrants arriving, a major issue in the run-up to the elections. Green challenger Tarek Al-Wazir, currently the deputy governor to conservative incumbent Boris Rhein, also faces an uphill struggle. In Bavaria, governor Markus Soeder is calling for voters to back "continuity and stability."

Persons: Chancellor Olaf Scholz's, Scholz, —, Karl, Rudolf Korte, Nancy Faeser, Tarek Al, Wazir, Boris Rhein, Markus Soeder, Soeder, Hubert Aiwanger, Aiwanger — Organizations: Sunday, Union, Christian Democratic Union, Christian Social Union, CSU, CDU, Social Democrats, environmentalist Greens, Germany, Greens, Free, Welt, Sonntag, Voters, Free Democrats, Free Voters Locations: Bavaria, Hesse, Frankfurt, Scholz's

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