Governance and citizenship

The Christian Democrats (CDU) polled 34.5% at elections held in Germany's most populated region, North-Rhine Westphalia on Sunday 9 May.

 

The CDU's results constitute a 10% decrease in comparison to the previous elections held in 2005. CDU coalition partner, the Free Democratic Party (FDP), secured 6.5% of the votes, while the opposition party, the Social Democrats (SDP) won 34.5% of the ballots, a 2.6% loss from 2005.

 

Support for the Greens increased from 6.3% to 12.5%. The relatively new left-wing party, Die Linke, also increased in the polls, having secured 6% of the votes, allowing it to enter the regional state parliament for the first time.

The participation rate reached the historically low 59.3%.