BERLIN — Bavaria’s governing conservative party slumped to its worst state election showing in 54 years Sunday and lost its longtime monopoly on power — a humiliating setback for a key ally of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The conservative Christian Social Union won only 43.4 percent of the vote, down from 60.7 percent five years ago, final results showed.
That left the CSU — the sister party to Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union— needing a coalition partner to run Bavaria, where it has held an absolute majority in the state parliament for 46 years.
Bavaria traditionally is an important source of votes for Merkel’s conservative bloc in national elections.
Ecuador: Big leftist victory
Exit polls are showing that Ecuadorans have approved a new constitution with at least 66 percent of the vote. It is a major victory for leftist President Rafael Correa. The new constitution significantly broadens Correa’s powers and allows him to run for two more consecutive terms.
Critics say it gives Correa too much control over the economy as well as the legislative and judicial branches as he forges his own brand of socialism with such benefits as social security for stay-at-home mothers.
Belarus: No opposition wins
The head of the Belarus election commission says no opposition candidate won a seat in parliament with nearly all districts counted.
Sunday’s parliamentary election was seen as a major test of authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko’s commitment to democratic reforms. Opposition leaders have alleged the vote was rigged despite promises by Lukashenko that international standards would be followed. Full results are expected later today.
Austria: Voters fed up
Austria’s far right made huge gains in Sunday’s parliamentary elections in a sign voters were disenchanted with the two main political parties, which governed in a coalition for the past 18 months.
Many Austrians were frustrated by squabbling between the governing parties, who were viewed as ineffective and distracted from public concerns over rising inflation and other problems.
The right-wing Freedom Party and the Alliance for the Future of Austria made gains, while the center-left Social Democrats and the conservative People’s Party, which formed the governing alliance that collapsed in July, made their worst showing since the end of World War II. A final tally is not expected before Oct. 6.
