German election: CDU, Merz drop in poll after AfD vote

Summary

Support for Germany’s CDU/CSU alliance has dropped to 28% after candidate Friedrich Merz relied on far-right AfD votes to pass a border policy resolution, breaking a long-standing political taboo.

Merz’s chancellor approval ratings also fell to 22%, tying with Green candidate Robert Habeck.

Nationwide protests followed the CDU-AfD cooperation, and parliament later rejected Merz’s immigration bill.

Meanwhile, Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s SPD holds at 16%, and the AfD remains steady at 20%.