Friedrich Merz, the unpopular and increasingly embattled German chancellor, vowed on Sunday evening that he would remain in the job, after his party performed poorly in two state elections in eastern Germany.<\/p>\n
Mr. Merz\u2019s center-right Christian Democrats, long the nation\u2019s dominant conservative party, limped to their worst postwar showing in a state election, in the lightly populated coastal state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania. In Berlin, the capital, they appeared on the brink of losing power after a surprisingly large loss to the far-left Die Linke party.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a disaster,\u201d Mr. Merz told reporters shortly after polls closed.<\/p>\n
The chancellor\u2019s approval rating is falling toward single digits. He has faced mounting pressure to resign since his party was trounced<\/a> in another eastern state earlier this month by the far-right Alternative for Germany party, or AfD. But he pledged on Sunday to stay and shepherd legislation meant to revive the German economy.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat needs to be done now requires backbone, steadfastness and patience,\u201d Mr. Merz said. \u201cI will provide that.\u201d<\/p>\n The timing and content of Mr. Merz\u2019s speech were \u201can attempt to choke off the speculation about his possible resignation,\u201d Carsten Brzeski, a senior analyst at the financial firm ING, wrote on Sunday evening.<\/p>\n The election showed a continuing polarization of the German electorate.<\/p>\n In Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, the AfD more than doubled its vote share from the previous election and finished first. It campaigned on economic renewal and on deporting refugees from the Middle East and elsewhere. With most of the vote counted, the Christian Democrats had fallen below 5 percent of the vote, the threshold for winning seats in the state parliament, a potentially devastating development for Mr. Merz\u2019s party if it held through the final tally.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have the mandate to govern,\u201d the AfD\u2019s candidate for state premier, Leif-Erik Holm, told jubilant supporters.<\/p>\n The AfD probably won\u2019t govern the state now, though. It was projected to fail to win a majority of seats and no other major parties will work with it in a coalition. That is partly because it has been classified as suspected right-wing extremist by German intelligence.<\/p>\n In Berlin, Die Linke outperformed its polls with a relentless focus on bringing down the high cost of housing. Its victory was large enough that it could lead the next Berlin government, replacing the Christian Democrats, who finished second in the race.<\/p>\n