Germany’s governing conservatives face mounting pressure on Chancellor Friedrich Merz after a GMS poll put the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) at a record 30%, 10 points ahead of the CDU/CSU at 20%. A special party meeting on Sunday will address the result, recent losses and elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Berlin. An INSA poll found that 78% of the wider public and a majority of CDU supporters no longer considered Merz the right person for the job. The CDU/CSU’s 20% GMS result, or 18%-20% in other national polling, is well below its 28.5% in the Feb. 23, 2025, federal election and leaves the governing coalition without a parliamentary majority on the GMS figures. Merz has rejected tying his political future to individual state-election results and said Germany needs stability to pursue reforms and address European challenges including hybrid warfare and support for Ukraine.