AFP reported that a deal among the SPD, Greens and far-left Die Linke will keep the far-right AfD out of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's next government after its 38% vote in September.
The parties reached the agreement on Nov. 10 after weeks of talks. The AfD finished first in the ballot, while the SPD placed second. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is in northeastern Germany and was once part of communist East Germany.
State Premier Manuela Schwesig announced the agreement in Schwerin. AFP reported that she described the negotiations as “tough.” The coalition reflects a longstanding stance among Germany’s mainstream parties against giving the far right a role in government.
The election was one of three regional votes in September in which Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives performed poorly, AFP reported. His Christian Democratic Union (CDU) recorded its worst-ever result in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and failed to enter parliament. Merz has vowed to remain in office and keep the national coalition together; the CDU governs nationally with the SPD.
The AfD leads in nationwide opinion polls, AFP reported. It also hopes to form its first regional government in Saxony-Anhalt, another former East German state, after winning 44% there in September.
