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Tight race in Rhineland-Palatinate as voters go to polls on March 22

Mar 22nd 2026 ยท Germany

Voters in western Germany's Rhineland-Palatinate vote on March 22 in a tight contest between incumbent SPD premier Alexander Schweitzer and CDU rival Gordon Schnieder, with polls showing a narrow CDU lead but Schweitzer stronger as a preferred leader and the AfD gaining support.

  • Election day is March 22, 2026, with about 2.95 million eligible voters in the state of roughly 4 million people.
  • Incumbent SPD premier Alexander Schweitzer, in office since 2024, faces CDU challenger Gordon Schnieder in a close contest.
  • ZDF-Politbarometer gives the CDU 29% and the SPD 27% in voting intention polls.
  • Schweitzer leads Schnieder by a wide margin on personal preference, 40% to 25% in the same poll.
  • The current state government is an SPD-FDP-Greens traffic light coalition, while polls show the AfD rising and the FDP slipping below the 5% threshold.

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