The Left Party won Sunday's Berlin state election with 25.5 per cent of the vote in the preliminary result, ahead of the Christian Democrats (CDU) on 19.1 per cent. This marks a major shift in the city's political landscape and a setback for Chancellor Friedrich Merz's ruling coalition.
The result could pave the way for lead candidate Elif Eralp to become Berlin's first mayor from the Left Party, which emerged from the former East German communist party. The party's victory came as the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) continued to make gains in eastern Germany.
Eralp campaigned heavily on Berlin's soaring housing costs, describing the rental situation as the capital's biggest social problem.
She pledged to pursue the nationalisation of private housing associations and said she would seek to remove property speculation from Berlin. The proposal follows a 2021 referendum in which 58 per cent of voters backed plans to legislate for the transfer of large private housing companies into public ownership.
The policy could involve around 220,000 housing units, although it remains unclear whether it will be implemented. SPD general secretary Tim Kluessendorf said nationalising the housing associations could cost about €20 billion ($23 billion).
An Infratest Dimap poll found that 37 per cent of respondents supported the measure.
The CDU finished second with 19 per cent, followed by the AfD on 16 per cent and the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) on 12.1 per cent.
The AfD's result was its strongest ever in Berlin. The party also came first in a state election in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on Sunday, following its victory in Saxony-Anhalt on 6 September.
The results reflect a broader shift away from Germany's established centre-left and centre-right parties. Economic difficulties and uncertainty over the country's future direction were also prominent issues in Berlin, alongside housing costs.
The Left Party still faces challenges in forming a governing coalition. Both the SPD and the Greens have indicated they could be willing to work with the party.
Greens leader Felix Banaszak, however, said allegations of antisemitism involving parts of the Berlin Left Party would need to be addressed before his party could join a coalition.
The Left Party rejects accusations of systematic antisemitism and says it opposes all forms of group-focused hostility, including antisemitism, racism and sexism.
Russia says no plague cases have been detected among contacts of a laboratory worker who died in Siberia, with most tests negative for infectious d...
Space-agency chiefs and industry leaders met to discuss lunar exploration, satellite networks and orbital security on Tuesday as a major global spa...
Police fired tear gas at protesters blockading French high schools on Tuesday as students, teachers and parents to...
Australian counterterrorism authorities are examining the links of the co-pilot accused of attacking the captain and attempting to take control of a flydubai flight bound for Israel. Authorities in New Zealand have also said they are investigating reports the suspect had spent time in that country.
Right-wing Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro will face leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in a runoff of the presidential election later this month, after he exceeded expectations in Sunday's first-round vote with a slight lead over the incumbent.
Russia says no plague cases have been detected among contacts of a laboratory worker who died in Siberia, with most tests negative for infectious diseases and many quarantined people already released.
Iran's Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad has resigned, with Hamid Bovard, chief executive of the state-owned National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), appointed as acting oil minister, according to Iranian state media.
Candidates elected to Bosnia and Herzegovina's three-member presidency declared victory after preliminary unofficial results showed Denis Becirovic leading the Bosniak seat, Darijana Filipovic ahead in the Croat seat and Zeljka Cvijanovic likely retaining the Serb seat.
Space-agency chiefs and industry leaders met to discuss lunar exploration, satellite networks and orbital security on Tuesday as a major global space congress entered its second day.
Police fired tear gas at protesters blockading French high schools on Tuesday as students, teachers and parents took to the streets on the biggest day of action in a wave of demonstrations against understaffed and dilapidated classrooms.
A large Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow and the surrounding region has killed two people, damaged homes and sparked a major fire at a key fuel facility, according to Russian officials and military bloggers.
Kenya has confirmed its first case of Ebola after a Kenyan citizen who had travelled from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) died in Nairobi, prompting health authorities to launch an urgent contact-tracing operation.
A regional conference on Afghanistan in Moscow ended on Monday without a joint statement after Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban delegation failed to agree on wording about terrorism. It was the first time since the inaugural meeting that participants failed to issue a joint statement.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment