The election day is tomorrow in Germany, where five candidates will compete for the position of chancellor. According to the latest poll, the main opposition candidate Friedrich Merz is leading with 28% of the vote.

In Germany, the public will head to the polls tomorrow to determine the 21st Federal Assembly (Bundestag). In the country, 30.6 million women and 59.2 million voters will cast their votes in 299 electoral districts to elect 630 members of parliament. Approximately 2.3 million young people will vote for the first time in the elections. A total of 7.1 million voters of foreign origin, including around 1 million Turks, will reflect their political preferences at the ballot box. In the upcoming elections with the participation of a total of 29 parties, 4,506 candidates, 1422 of whom are females, will compete to become members of parliament. In these elections where Turkish-origin individuals have put forward candidates from different parties, there are 53 Turkish candidates running for a seat in parliament. Citizens will be able to vote from 08:00 to 18:00 local time at the polling stations in the 16 states where 675,000 people will be on duty during the elections.

FIVE CANDIDATES WILL COMPETE The Social Democrat Party (SPD) has re-nominated the incumbent Chancellor Olaf Scholz as its candidate for chancellorship. Criticized for not being charismatic and making exciting speeches, Scholz’s popularity suffered significantly during his tenure as Chancellor, especially in the last 1.5 years.

The Christian Union (CDU/CSU) parties in the main opposition, on the other hand, nominated Friedrich Merz, the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Party.

Leading the internal opposition against former Chancellor Angela Merkel, Merz argued that some of the CDU voters were driven into the arms of the far-right AfD party due to Merkel’s policies on immigration and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 46-year-old Alice Weidel, who has been seen as the face of “far-right populism” in recent years in Germany, has entered the race as the candidate of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) Party. Weidel, also referred to as the “strong woman” of the AfD, takes former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher as an example.

The Greens nominated the Minister of Economics and Climate Protection and Deputy Chancellor Robert Habeck as their candidate for chancellor.

After leaving the Left Party, Sahra Wagenknecht, a 55-year-old who received education in philosophy and modern German literature, founded her own party called “Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance – Understanding and Justice” (BSW) in January 2024.

According to the latest poll conducted by the Second German Television Channel ZDF, the CDU/CSU in the main opposition is leading with 28% of the vote.