Germany's conservative CDU/CSU bloc has dropped to 20 percent in a nationwide poll, its lowest approval rating since October 2021, according to an INSA survey.
The weekly poll, conducted for the Sunday newspaper Bild am Sonntag, showed the conservative opposition alliance falling by one percentage point from the previous week. Meanwhile, the right-wing Alternative for Germany party maintained a firm lead as the country's most popular political force, polling at 28 percent.
The Greens remained stable at 13 percent, while the Social Democrats and Die Linke both stood at 12 percent. The Free Democratic Party registered 5 percent, matching its result from the previous week and reaching the threshold required to enter parliament if elections took place this Sunday. The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance received 3 percent, failing to reach the parliamentary threshold.
National poll numbers and survey methodology
INSA surveyed 1,203 people across Germany between August 10 and August 14. The polling institute placed the margin of error for the survey at plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
The survey results represent the lowest standing recorded by INSA for the conservative bloc since October 2021. The alliance is made up of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union, which together form the main centre-right opposition force in federal politics.
Under Germany's electoral system, political parties must win at least five percent of the vote to gain representation in parliament, a rule intended to maintain legislative stability.
Upcoming state elections in September
The survey comes just weeks before voters head to the polls in three regional contests scheduled for September. Saxony-Anhalt will open the election cycle on September 6, followed by state elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and the capital city-state of Berlin on September 20.
Alternative for Germany is expected to secure record results across all three state contests. In Saxony-Anhalt, the party could achieve an unprecedented absolute majority, which would allow it to join a state government for the first time.
