Merkel chides squabblers after poll shock in regional election

Sep 5, 2011, 12:58 GMT

Berlin - German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized on Monday the squabbling in her governing coalition, speaking after sharp losses by her party in a regional election the previous day.

Propelled by the popularity of their premier Erwin Sellering, the Social Democrats (SPD) won 35.7 per cent of the vote in the state of Mecklenburg West Pomerania, building on their take of 30.2 per cent in 2006, the provisional ballot count showed.

The result cheered the Social Democrats who are in opposition at federal level.

'We have to get on with our work. We should debate with one another in public as little as possible, and we should discuss things in a way that is conducive to results,' Merkel told reporters after meeting officials of her party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

'It's clear that arguments are not helpful. The important thing in hard times is to solve hard problems.'

Carping in Merkel's federal coalition has come to a head in recent weeks over the likely cost to Germany of bailing out weak eurozone governments, with critics accusing Merkel of weak leadership.

Referring to the threat that some of her supporters may foresake the government in a vote later this month on bailout legislation, Merkel said she was 'confident' that the bills would be passed 'by our own majority.'

In her first public comment on the Sunday poll result, Merkel admitted to disappointment that support for her party in the coastal state slid to 23.1 per cent, down from 28.8 per cent in 2006.

'We can't keep it secret that this result did not match what we hoped for,' Merkel said, while blaming 'a range of local factors' for the poll loss including an unpopular redrawing of county boundaries.

'You can't construe every single state legislative election as a proxy federal election. Otherwise you could not decide anything at federal level,' Merkel added. She urged premier Sellering to resume his previous coalition with the CDU to rule the state.

Sellering has the option of instead forming a coalition with the Left Party, which came in at 18.4 per cent. The Green Party won 8.4 per cent and the far-right National Democratic Party (NPD) won 6 per cent.

The Free Democratic Party, part of Merkel's ruling coalition in Berlin, failed to win any state legislature seats Sunday, taking only 2.7 per cent of the overall vote, raising fresh questions about its future in German politics.