By Riham Alkousaa

BERLIN (Reuters – Germany’s Conservatives are expected to win the regional election in Schleswig-Holstein’s northern state on Sunday. This is a major boost for former Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party. The party was expelled from federal government last year.

CDU, the Christian Democrats have an impressive lead in state polls. The nearly 3,000,000 residents of this state account for 3.5% of Germany’s total population.

ZDF Politbarometer released a survey Thursday putting the CDU’s position in Schleswig-Holstein at 38%. This puts it ahead of the Social Democrats and Greens (both at 18%).

Analysts believe that the CDU’s strong standing at the state level is partially due to Daniel Guenther being the popular state premier.

CDU sources said that Guenther (48 years old) could be given another term to strengthen their role as moderates in the CDU. This would counter Frederich Merz who is more right-wing.

Next week’s elections in Germany’s largest state, North Rhine-Westphalia will prove to be more important. There the SPD (and CDU) are neck-and-neck.

The party would suffer a serious blow if the conservatives lose in NRW after they lost in March to the small western state of Saarland.

It will also allow Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s alliance of the SPD Greens and the business-friendly Free Democrats to be able to pass laws at the top house of national parliament. This is where regional elections are used to decide the allocation of votes.

TRANSITION OF ENERGY

State elections tend to be dominated by issues regionally such as property taxes or the cost for childcare.

National issues will also be of interest this year, given the shift in German security and foreign policy following Russia’s February invasion.

One, Germany wants to increase the use of renewable energy in order to lessen its dependency on Russia for oil and gas.

Schleswig-Holstein, located between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, is Germany’s most important state in wind power generation. It has over 3,000 offshore and onshore wind turbines.

Greens seek to increase wind turbines and reduce distances between them and homes, while CDU is interested in increasing the capacity of the existing wind farm without adding to their number.

Schleswig-Holstein also will be the home of one of Germany’s two liquid (LNG) terminals. This construction is being pushed forward by the Ukraine war.

Greens and South Schleswig Party were opposed to the project in the past.

According to Christian Meyer Heidemann, the Commissioner of Civic Education for the state, they will not be able to protest if the government is formed, given energy supply concerns, which Christian Meyer Heidemann says, an unpartisan office.

Since 2017, the state was ruled over by the so-called Jamaica coalition consisting of conservatives, Greens, and FDP. Guenther stated that he would like to see this continue in the event that he is elected.

If the majority cannot be reached without another partner, the next state coalition might also only include two parties, either the CDU or Greens, or both the CDU & the FDP.

Meyer-Heidemann stated, “It is about the last percent.”