Election results in Berlin, Germany on Sunday indicate that the communist party Die Linke has won 51% of the Muslim voters, resulting in 25% overall, according to exit polls. The center-right CDU, the party of Chancellor Freidrich Merz, came in with only 20% overall. This could mean that “communists will be in charge of the German capital for the first time since the fall of the Berlin Wall.” That communist candidate is also Muslim.
According to Reuters, Chancellor Merz’s conservative party had its worst regional election defeat in postwar Germany. Merz’s party, Christian Democrats (CDU) fell short of the Die Linke party in a second election in Berlin. There is a possibility that the Die Linke party, with descendents from the Communist party of East Germany, could take power of the mayor’s office in Berlin.
Elif Eralp, of Turkish background and Die Linke’s candidate for mayor of Berlin, has been compared to New York’s Zohran Mamdani due to their similar stances on affordable housing, the cost of living, and grassroots campaigning. The Die Linke party would likely need a coalition, potentially with the centre-Left Social Democrats party (SPD) in order to win the mayoral race.
However, SPD’s co-leader, Barbel Bas said on Monday, “It’s very difficult to work with a party that is largely anti-Semetic.” According to the Telegraph, Ibrahim Ibrahim, a Hamas supporter, was seen at Die Linke’s election party on Sunday. Ibrahim is said to have described Yahya Sinwar, a Hamas mastermind of the Oct 7, 2023 Israel attacks, as a ‘martyr hero.’
In response, Eralp stated, “Celebrating violence and terrorism is absolutely unacceptable. I stand for the protection of Jewish life.” SPD won 12% of the vote and if it formed a coalition with Die Linke and the Greens, this could give the Die Linke party enough seats.
The far right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party came in first place in voting and while it was not a majority of votes, it appears to be gaining momentum in regional states.
