Many Germans voting in local elections alongside EU vote

Alongside the European elections, voters in about half of German states are being called to elect local officials on Sunday.

Decisions on representative bodies such as district councils, municipal councils or district assemblies are due in Baden-Württemberg, Brandenburg, Hamburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt.

In the eastern states of Brandenburg and Saxony, the vote is seen as a test of public opinion ahead of the state elections in September, in which the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is projected to do well.

In Thuringia, where local elections were held a fortnight ago, many citizens are to decide on their future district administrator or mayor in run-off elections. In 9 cases, AfD candidates are also on the ballot.

In the first round of Thuringia's local elections, the party won a number of additional seats in local parliaments, but did not manage to gain seats in town halls and district councils.

Germans are also being called to the polls on Sunday in the continent-wide European Parliament elections in which around 360 million people can cast their ballot over four days.

After two and a half years in government, Chancellor Olaf Scholz's centre-left coalition is expected to lose ground in the EU vote, while the AfD could become the second-strongest party.