Polling stations open: the general election has started

The time has come – around 60,000 polling stations have opened their doors since 8 a.m. The rush this time will be a little less, as one in three of the 60 million eligible voters could cast their vote by postal vote.

The general election has started. Around 60,000 polling stations opened their doors at 8 a.m. Almost 60.4 million citizens are called upon to cast their first and second votes by 6 p.m. and thus decide on the composition of the new Bundestag. Around 2.8 million citizens are taking part in a federal election for the first time. A total of 47 parties are standing for election.

Lots of postal voters

It is expected that this time, more people than ever before will cast their votes by postal vote. According to the Federal Returning Office, this time it could be at least 40 percent. In 2017, 28.6 percent of those eligible to vote already made use of postal votes. The turnout four years ago was 76.2 percent.

In parallel to the federal election, a new state parliament is elected in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and the House of Representatives in the state of Berlin. The SPD can count on election victories in both federal states. A referendum is also being held in Berlin on the expropriation of housing stocks from large real estate groups. However, the result is not legally binding for the Senate.

SPD ahead in polls

The SPD with Chancellor candidate Olaf Scholz led in recent polls just ahead of the Union with its candidate Armin Laschet (CDU). Well behind were the Greens with Chancellor candidate Annalena Baerbock. The FDP is aiming for a double-digit result again.

However, opinion polls are only snapshots of the political mood and say nothing about the election result. This applies even more to this election because of the high number of still undecided voters. In the federal election in 2017, the CDU and CSU had become the strongest force with 32.9 percent. The SPD came to 20.5 percent, the AfD was the third strongest force with 12.6 percent. It was followed by the FDP (10.7 percent), the Left (9.2) and the Greens with 8.9 percent.