Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's ruling coalition has boosted its image in the floods crisis gripping Germany and narrowed the gap on the conservative opposition ahead of the September 22nd election, according to a poll released today.
The survey still shows the Christian Union alliance of Bavarian leader Edmumd Stoiber ahead, but no longer assured of a majority.
His CDU/CSU would get 40 per cent of the vote if there were an election held tomorrow, down one point from a week ago, while the Free Democrats (FDP), with whom Stoiber would like to form a government, are down two to eight per cent.
In contrast, Schroeder's Social Democrats (SPD) are up one percentage point to 36 and his Greens coalition partners are also up one to seven per cent.
The poll of 1,500 people was conducted Thursday and Friday in the midst of the floods ravaging the country.
Schroeder's personal rating has risen two points to 44 per cent, while Stoiber is unchanged at 28 per cent.
AFP