Germany's Merkel set for tense battle with Schulz
Martin Schulz, the German Social Democrats' candidate for federal elections in September, would beat Chancellor Angela Merkel if balloting was based on a direct leadership vote, a poll showed on Friday.
The poll carried out by Forschungsgruppe Wahlen for broadcaster ZDF showed 49 percent of Germans wanted former European Parliament President Schulz to be their chancellor while 38 percent would prefer Merkel to stay in office.
That marks a turnaround compared with the end of January, when the same poll showed Merkel had 44 percent support compared to Schulz's 40 percent, ZDF said.
The SPD, junior partner in Merkel's ruling coalition, has trailed her conservative bloc for years in opinion polls until the nomination of Schulz sparked a revival in support for the party, which last won an election under Gerhard Schröder in 2002.
By party, the poll showed the SPD at 30 percent - its highest level of the current parliament in that survey.
Merkel's conservatives - comprising her Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU) - shed 2 points to 34 percent. The anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) weakened by one percentage point but was in third place on 10 percent. Its fortunes have been boosted by worries about security and the integration of more than 1 million immigrants who've entered Germany since 2015.
Some 30 percent would like to see a left-leaning alliance of the SPD, Linke and Greens take power while 44 percent were against such a coalition, the poll showed. The survey of 1,231 people was conducted between 14th and 15th of February.
The poll carried out by Forschungsgruppe Wahlen for broadcaster ZDF showed 49 percent of Germans wanted former European Parliament President Schulz to be their chancellor while 38 percent would prefer Merkel to stay in office.
That marks a turnaround compared with the end of January, when the same poll showed Merkel had 44 percent support compared to Schulz's 40 percent, ZDF said.
The SPD, junior partner in Merkel's ruling coalition, has trailed her conservative bloc for years in opinion polls until the nomination of Schulz sparked a revival in support for the party, which last won an election under Gerhard Schröder in 2002.
By party, the poll showed the SPD at 30 percent - its highest level of the current parliament in that survey.
Merkel's conservatives - comprising her Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU) - shed 2 points to 34 percent. The anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) weakened by one percentage point but was in third place on 10 percent. Its fortunes have been boosted by worries about security and the integration of more than 1 million immigrants who've entered Germany since 2015.
Some 30 percent would like to see a left-leaning alliance of the SPD, Linke and Greens take power while 44 percent were against such a coalition, the poll showed. The survey of 1,231 people was conducted between 14th and 15th of February.