Germany's Laschet under pressure as final election debate nears

FILE PHOTO: German Chancellor Angela Merkel gestures during a news conference with Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama at Tirana Business Park, in Tirana, Albania, September 14, 2021. REUTERS/Florion Goga/File Photo

BERLIN (Reuters) -The conservative candidate aiming to succeed German Chancellor Angela Merkel remained under pressure on Sunday ahead of a televised election debate that will be one of his last chances to catch up with Social-Democrat rival Olaf Scholz.

The latest INSA poll for Bild am Sonntag puts the Social Democrats (SPD) at 26% support, stable from a week ago, while the conservative bloc of Merkel's centre-right Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union, added half a percentage point to come in at 21%.