Candidate for Gelsenkirchen mayor from Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party Norbert Emmerich, and Enxhi Seli-Zacharias of AfD react to the exit polls for the North Rhine-Westphalian (NRW) local elections, in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, September 14, 2025. REUTERS/Leon Kuegeler/File Photo
COLOGNE (Reuters) -Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party made deep inroads in the country's most populous state in municipal elections on Sunday, reaching mayoral run-offs for the first time and underlining its appeal beyond its eastern heartland.
The conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) remained the strongest party overall but support for their national coalition partners the Social Democrats (SPD) declined in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), a western state of more than 18 million, while the AfD almost tripled its score from five years ago to 14.5%.
