(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives have widened their lead above their political rivals according to an opinion poll released yesterday, just over two months ahead of September's election.
Mounted in the days following this month's Group of 20 summit in Hamburg, the survey from Berlin pollsters Forsa showed the violent protests surrounding the meeting of the world's major economies as having failed to impact on Merkel's standing among voters.
Support for her Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian-based Christian Social Union (CSU) allies climbed to 40% this week, Forsa said.
Backing for the CDU-CSU now stands at its highest level since Merkel's contentious decision in September 2015 to open Germany's borders to allow about 890,000 refugees to travel into the country.
CDU-CSU support rose one percentage point over the last week despite the extensive coverage in Germany of the violence that overshadowed the G20 summit, which Merkel chaired.
The Forsa poll, which surveyed participants from July 10-14, showed support for Merkel's main rivals, the centre-left Social Democrats (SDP), as continuing to slide.
At 22 per cent, the SPD was now below the 25.7% of the vote it scored at the last election in September 2013.
Forsa chief Manfred Guellner warned in a newspaper interview that the SPD was unlikely to be able to close the 18-percentage-point gap enjoyed by the CDU-CSU before voters cast their ballots on September 24.
'A rapid recovery is not to be expected, Guellner told the daily Bild.
In the meantime, the CDU-CSU is edging back towards the 41.5 per cent it garnered in the 2013 ballot. Backing for the CDU-CSU highlights Merkel's success in promoting her image as a safe pair of hands following a series of terrorist attacks in the nation and concerns about political uncertainty globally.
Merkel also enjoys a big lead over SPD chief Martin Schulz in terms of personal popularity ratings.
If Germans could elect their chancellor directly, 52% would back Merkel, while just 22% would support Schulz.
The Forsa poll also points to the coalition options facing Merkel should she be successful in winning a fourth term in office in September.
A continuation of Merkel's current coalition with the SPD would command a solid majority in the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag.
But in line with other surveys, the Forsa poll also raises the prospect of the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) — the CDU-CSU's traditional coalition allies — returning to the Bundestag with 8% of the vote after being wiped out of parliament in 2013.
That could be enough to convince Merkel to dump the SPD in favour of forging a new coalition with the FDP.
On the other hand, an SPD-led coalition compromising the hard-left Die Linke and the Greens would be unable to piece together a parliamentary majority to oust Merkel and her conservative political bloc, according to the Forsa poll.
Yesterday's Forsa poll also forecast that the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) will enter national parliament for the first time, with support currently at 7%.
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