Nearly two thirds of voters think Seehofer 'intolerable'
German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer's popularity has nosedived among voters, suggesting his explosive spat with Chancellor Angela Merkel over migration may have backfired.
Nearly two thirds of Germans now see the minister as a 'troublemaker,' according to Monday's Forsa trend barometer. The same number, 62 percent, see him as 'no longer tolerable.'
Minister Seehofer has repeatedly made headlines in recent weeks by challenging Chancellor Merkel over her immigration policy, even threatening to resign after failing to gain guarantees of tougher policing along Germany's borders.
But with this explosive behavior, Seehofer, who is also leader of the Bavarian Christian Socialist Union (CSU), appears to have alienated both the electorate and his own party.
Among CSU voters, the number of those considering Seehofer no longer tolerable remains high at 56%, with less than half of the party’s followers considering him an upstanding politician.
Minister Seehofer is not the only CSU politician whose ratings have slipped.
Bavarian Minister President Markus Söder has clearly lost the trust of the public and has fallen with Seehofer to the bottom of the rankings.
The only people to come below the two CSU politicians in the popularity index are Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) leaders Alice Weidel and Alexander Gauland.
The poll will be unsettling for the CSU, which faces Bavarian state parliament elections in just three months.
But it will be welcomed by Chancellor Merkel, who remains the highest ranked politician amongst Bavarians and the wider country with a 47 point approval rating, as opposed to Söder’s 32 and Seehofer’s 31.
The poll suggests the only group with whom Seehofer remains popular is AfD voters, who are gleefully watching the damage he is inflicting upon the CSU.
“Seehofer only remains valued by AfD followers, who want to tackle the CSU,” Forsa boss Manfred Güllner told RTL.
Güllner laid the blame for Seehofer's popularity nosedive squarely at the minister's own feet.
Seehofer had gambled away his credibility among voters and within his own party during his series of recent controversial public appearances, Güllner added.
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Nearly two thirds of Germans now see the minister as a 'troublemaker,' according to Monday's Forsa trend barometer. The same number, 62 percent, see him as 'no longer tolerable.'
Minister Seehofer has repeatedly made headlines in recent weeks by challenging Chancellor Merkel over her immigration policy, even threatening to resign after failing to gain guarantees of tougher policing along Germany's borders.
But with this explosive behavior, Seehofer, who is also leader of the Bavarian Christian Socialist Union (CSU), appears to have alienated both the electorate and his own party.
Among CSU voters, the number of those considering Seehofer no longer tolerable remains high at 56%, with less than half of the party’s followers considering him an upstanding politician.
Minister Seehofer is not the only CSU politician whose ratings have slipped.
Bavarian Minister President Markus Söder has clearly lost the trust of the public and has fallen with Seehofer to the bottom of the rankings.
The only people to come below the two CSU politicians in the popularity index are Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) leaders Alice Weidel and Alexander Gauland.
The poll will be unsettling for the CSU, which faces Bavarian state parliament elections in just three months.
But it will be welcomed by Chancellor Merkel, who remains the highest ranked politician amongst Bavarians and the wider country with a 47 point approval rating, as opposed to Söder’s 32 and Seehofer’s 31.
The poll suggests the only group with whom Seehofer remains popular is AfD voters, who are gleefully watching the damage he is inflicting upon the CSU.
“Seehofer only remains valued by AfD followers, who want to tackle the CSU,” Forsa boss Manfred Güllner told RTL.
Güllner laid the blame for Seehofer's popularity nosedive squarely at the minister's own feet.
Seehofer had gambled away his credibility among voters and within his own party during his series of recent controversial public appearances, Güllner added.
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