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- May 27, 2009
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The Associated Press: German opposition wins major state vote
BERLIN (AP) Voters in Germany's most populous state strengthened a center-left regional government which Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives had portrayed as irresponsibly spendthrift, and inflicted an embarrassingly heavy defeat Sunday on the German leader's party, projections showed.
The center-left Social Democrats and Greens Germany's main opposition parties won combined support of about 51 percent in the election in North Rhine-Westphalia state, according to ARD television projections based on exit polls and early counting.
That would be enough to give them a majority in the state legislature, which they narrowly missed in the last regional election two years ago. Meanwhile, support for Merkel's Christian Democrats was seen dropping to 26 percent from more than 34 percent, their worst showing in the state since World War II.
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BERLIN (AP) Voters in Germany's most populous state strengthened a center-left regional government which Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives had portrayed as irresponsibly spendthrift, and inflicted an embarrassingly heavy defeat Sunday on the German leader's party, projections showed.
The center-left Social Democrats and Greens Germany's main opposition parties won combined support of about 51 percent in the election in North Rhine-Westphalia state, according to ARD television projections based on exit polls and early counting.
That would be enough to give them a majority in the state legislature, which they narrowly missed in the last regional election two years ago. Meanwhile, support for Merkel's Christian Democrats was seen dropping to 26 percent from more than 34 percent, their worst showing in the state since World War II.
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