APTOPIX Germany Election
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz watches the media during a press conference at the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) headquarters in Berlin, Germany, after yesterday's two state elections in Berlin and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Monday, Sept. 21, 2026.
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German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is standing by his vow to stay in office after his party suffered two more regional election defeats and was voted out of a state legislature in a humiliating first. But he faces a struggle to keep his reform agenda intact. Minutes after polls closed on Sunday, the unpopular Merz said he planned to stay on as leader of both Germany and his center-right party, and said that he would push through reforms to Europe’s biggest economy. The chancellor said no one raised any “personnel questions” in party leadership meetings Sunday or Monday.
