Merz’s Economic Plans Hit Fresh Bump in State Election Loss

Friedrich Merz’s job fixing Germany’s economy just got even harder.

On Sunday, the German chancellor’s Christian Democrats narrowly lost a state election to the Greens in Baden-Wuerttemberg despite leading in the polls for months. Merz’s junior coalition partner in Berlin, the Social Democrats, also suffered their worst-ever result in the wealthy southwestern region, home to carmakers Mercedes-Benz Group AG and Porsche AG.