Poll Indicates 52% of Germans Won’t Miss Merkel

In a poll of 5,007 people conducted by Civey for the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper between September 22 and 24, respondents were asked if they would miss Merkel after her chancellorship ended.

The majority (52%) said they would not miss the veteran politician, who has continuously governed Germany since 2005. Just 38% said they would miss Merkel, while the rest were undecided.

Merkel, Germany’s second-longest-serving chancellor since World War II, will step down after this Sunday’s general election. The state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia, Armin Laschet, is tapped to succeed her as chancellor if the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) draws enough votes.

The CDU’s main rivals are the Social Democratic Party, led by Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and the Greens, whose chief candidate is Annalena Baerbock, the party’s co-leader.