Beit Yisrael International: The far-right leader soared in Germany's local elections: "Those who ignore the will of the voters will be punished"

 Beit Yisrael International: The far-right leader soared in Germany's local elections: "Those who ignore the will of the voters will be punished"

The far-right leader soared in Germany's local elections: "Those who ignore the will of the voters will be punished"

In Germany's largest district state, there was a sharp shift to the right: the Alternative for Germany party received 14.5% of the vote, almost three times as much as in the previous elections.

00:00

04:20

Listen to the article

 

 

 

 

 

colbass.com

Martin Winzenz, chairman of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in North Rhine-Westphalia, during an election rally (Photo: IMAGO/Revierfoto via Reuters Connect)

Uriel Levy

Last updated: 15.09.2025 | 19:15

Related Topics:

• Germany

Nearly 14 million Germans went to the polls in the northwestern German state of North Rhine-Westphalia on Sunday, most of them voting for the far right and the far-right. Citizens of Germany's most populous country, once a stronghold of the Social Democrats (SPD) and the center-left Greens, made a sharp turn to the right.

The ruling Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party has managed to maintain its power and even become somewhat stronger, but it has tripled its strength with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD). North Rhine-Westphalia Prime Minister Hendrik Wist of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) welcomed his party's victory in the local elections.

West said North Rhine-Westphalia was the "CDU powerhouse" and stressed that its election success demonstrated how the party in West Germany could be "setting the pace" for strong results for the party across Germany.

Danke heute besonders an die Wahlkämpfer, die bei dieser Wahl für Mandate und Ämter kandidiert haben. Sie alle haben gezeigt, wie lebendig unsere Demokratie vor Ort ist. (2/3)

— Hendrik Wüst (@HendrikWuest) September 14, 2025

In the local elections, about 20,000 seats were at stake in the parliaments of 400 towns and municipalities, as well as mayors in the major cities. The elections did not have any direct implications for the federal government in Berlin, but they were the first public opinion test since the new coalition came to power in Berlin on May 6.

According to preliminary results, the CDU received the most votes with 33.3%. The SPD is next with 22.1%, the AfD with 14.5%, and the Greens with 13.5%. The AfD also overtook the Greens in North Rhine-Westphalia in the federal elections held last February.

The clear losers were the Greens, who lost a significant share of the vote, while the AfD nearly tripled its result from the last election held in the country five years ago, making them the big winners in terms of momentum and the number of new seats they would win in the local parliaments.

The leader of the AfD in the provincial state, Martin Vincentz, said yesterday after the release of the samples: "This was a referendum on the direction in which our country is heading. And those who ignore the will of the voters will be punished by them."

North Rhine-Westphalia is home to about a quarter of Germany's population, and it dominates large metropolitan areas such as Cologne and Düsseldorf. The country also has extensive rural areas. The election results are very significant, as the strengthening of the extreme right in recent years has been felt especially in East Germany, and less so in the West, and North Rhine-Westphalia is actually located at the western edge of Germany and its large population represents West German public opinion.

This is a Google translation of: מנהיג הימין הקיצוני זינק בבחירות המקומיות בגרמניה: "אלה שמתעלמים מרצון הבוחרים ייענשו" - אתר החדשות דבר