STORY: In North Rhine-Westphalia, the election of a new state parliament began on Sunday. Around 13 million voters are called upon to cast their votes in the largest political mood test this year. According to the latest polls, a change of government is to be expected because the black-yellow coalition is unlikely to regain a majority. Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst’s CDU is two to four percentage points ahead of the SPD with just over 30 percent. Wüst was quite confident on the election Sunday in Rhede: “We’re fine, it’s a wonderful day in North Rhine-Westphalia, wonderful weather, a great day to vote. I ask all citizens to exercise their right to vote and I am very grateful for all the volunteers at the polling stations who ensure that we can vote today.” The top candidate in the SPD is called Kuchaty. He gave on Sunday morning his vote in Essen: “That was just a moving moment for me. Because the room in which I just cast our votes and in which we just cast our votes was the classroom, the 1 D, in exactly this classroom I started school in 1974. And completely unclear what sometime will come in my life. And you see me very happy today, not only with a wonderful wife and three children, but also that at that time I actually managed to get an educational advancement here in the north of Essen. And for me that has always been a political responsibility and motivation and drive for my entire political life, to give children from this region in particular, but also in all of North Rhine-Westphalia the best and good opportunities.” The Greens and the FDP. There may be several coalition options on the evening of the election, so that it will probably only be decided in the days after who will lead the future government. As in the previous state elections in Saarland and last weekend in Schleswig-Holstein, state political issues such as that dominated the election campaign School and transport policy, the climate-friendly conversion of industry and the fight against crime: Citizens in the most populous federal state can cast their votes until 6 p.m.