Leipzig elections: Die Linke and Grüne win; AfD grows

After a tumultuous Sunday evening watching the Leipzig elections unfold at Neues Rathaus, Leipzigers got their preliminary final tally at around 1 a.m. Among Leipzig voters, Die Linke (The Left) won in percentage of votes for city council, and Die Grünen (Greens) for the European Parliament. Still, the far-right AfD (Alternativ für Deutschland) had the most impressive gains, now having more city council seats than the SPD (Social Democrats), besides a lawmaker in Brussels.

Results of Leipzig elections for city council, 26 May 2019.
Results of Leipzig elections for city council, 26 May 2019. Screenshot from LVZ.de

In the Leipzig elections for city council on 26 May, the results mean that Die Linke (21.4%) and Grüne (20.7%) combined now make up the majority, each with 15 seats.

According to the announced results, Die Grünen gained 5.7% in Leipzig City Council seats. Die Linke, despite nabbing the highest percentage of votes by a hair, still lost 2.8%. The biggest loser was Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party, the CDU (Christian Democrats), which lost 7.4% and its dominance, down to 13 seats.

As part of a trend developing over the past few years, the SPD has also suffered a significant loss (5.9%), which brings it down to 9 seats in the city council. By contrast, the AfD gained 8.5%, now with 11 seats – the fourth biggest party, just behind the CDU and well ahead of the 3 seats of the FDP (the Liberals). Alternative parties made only small gains, with the satirical Die PARTEI ahead of the rest at 2 seats.

Overall in Saxony, the AfD came in first in votes for the European Parliament, with 25.3%, or 2.3 percentage points ahead of the CDU.

Results of Leipzig elections for European Parliament, 26 May 2019.
Results of Leipzig elections for European Parliament, 26 May 2019. Screenshot from LVZ.de

In the Leipzig elections for European Parliament, the AfD came in third place (slightly ahead of Die Linke). Dresden resident Maximilian Krah will represent the AfD for Saxony as Member of Parliament (MEP). Despite its weak showing, the SPD will maintain its long-time MEP Constanze Krehl in Brussels, while Hermann Winkler (CDU) is teetering on the edge of losing his position, final results pending. Retaining representation for Saxony in Brussels are both Die Linke (Cornelia Ernst) and Die Grünen (Anna Cavazzini).

Result projections from yesterday’s European elections in Germany give the AfD the fourth largest number of votes for parliament, behind CDU, Grüne and SPD.


We will publish follow-ups with more analysis and details in the coming days, including on the newly elected and reelected Leipzig City Council members.

A Global Studies doctoral degree holder and former newspaper reporter, avid eater, pseudo-philosopher and poet, occasion-propelled singer, semi-professional socializer, movie addict, Brazilian-American nomad. In this space, she will share some of her experiences and (mis)adventures regarding various topics, with special attention to social issues.

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