by Mish
Results are uncertain now, thanks to the refugee crisis.
Hoping to shore up support, Merkel is taking credit for the actions of Austria and nine Balkan countries to seal their borders.
Merkel Gratified
Bloomberg reports Merkel Cites ‘Gratifying’ Reduction in Refugee Flow to Germany.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel cited a “gratifying” drop in the number of refugees entering Germany and defended her efforts to reach a deal with Turkey on migration as she made a final effort to win votes ahead of three state elections Sunday.
With polls showing support for Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union slipping, the chancellor placed her open-border refugee policy front and center on Saturday as voters in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt prepared to go to the polls.
“Even if it’s gratifying that far fewer refugees are coming at the moment, there are still many here, so we still need to ask ourselves how we’ll confront this challenge,” Merkel told a crowd in the southern German town of Haigerloch on the edge of the Black Forest.
German Elections
Polling stations open at 8 a.m. and close at 6 p.m., when exit polls will be released. Amusingly, Merkel blamed the Greens and the Social Democrats for slowing decisions aimed at stemming the refugee influx.
Here’s the only reason the number of refugees slowed: Austria and Nine Balkan Countries Effectively Tell Merkel Go to Hell.
But hey, politicians do what they they always do: 1. Take credit for any improvement. 2. Never admit any responsibility when they are to blame.
It will be interesting to see the percentage of votes going to AfD, Germany’s eurosceptic, anti-immigration party.
Mike “Mish” Shedlock
