Slight losses for Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservative bloc of Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union(CDU/CSU), and slight gains for their coalition partner, the center-left Social Democrats (SPD). These are the key findings of the ARD-Deutschlandtrend opinion poll conducted by the infratest-dimap institute, which surveyed around 1,300 representative voters between February 2 and 4.

The majority of respondents deplore inequality in German society; they also see the gap between rich and poor widening. Of those surveyed, 24% trust the Social Democrats most to ensure greater social justice. That is the highest figure of all parties.

In February, 62% of respondents said injustice is on the rise, a rise in two percentage points compared to July last year. Most respondents said the gap between rich and poor is widening, while 13% more than a year ago said they believe that the tax and social security burden is unfairly distributed.

Only 9% now say that foreign nationals and asylum-seekers are given preferential treatment over Germans.

Lars Klingbeil rewarded for criticism of Trump?

Overall satisfaction with the government has risen slightly. At the beginning of February, the CDU/CSU stands at 26% voter support, which is a slight loss compared to a month ago. The Social Democrats gained two percentage points, a trend they haven't seen in a long time. The far-right populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) also saw a small dip, but remains the second strongest force at 24%. Meanwhile, the two opposition parties represented in the Bundestag, the environmentalist Greens and the socialist Left Party, remained at their January levels of 12% and 10% respectively.

Pollsters attribute the gains for the Social Democrats to their party leader, Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil, who has gained five percentage points in popularity. Klingbeil had recently taken a tougher stance criticizing the policies of US President Donald Trump.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) remains the most respected politician in Germany, followed by Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU). Chancellor Merz lags behind at only 25%.

Merz polarizes with an attack on work ethics

In the first few weeks of the year, there has been widespread criticism of Chancellor Merz's remarks on Germans' work ethics.

"Prosperity cannot be maintained with a four-day work week and an exaggerated work-life balance," Merz said in early January. He also pointed out what he sees as a high rate of sick leave: an average of 14.5 days per employee per year. "Is that really necessary?" he asked.

All this triggered a debate which turned to outrage when the CDU's economic wing identified "lifestyle part-time" as a problem and suggested restricting the right to go part-time, introduced in 2001, exclusively for those who need to take care of children or sick relatives, or pursue an education.

Social spending constitutes the largest item in the German federal budget, with pension supplements and welfare payments being the main drivers, alongside health costs. An association of CDU-affiliated entrepreneurs then suggested that health insurers need not pay for dental treatment.

In January, a commission of experts submitted proposals to the federal government on how the welfare state could be modernized in a meaningful way. There is broad agreement that the social security system needs to be reformed: 71% of those surveyed say it would be good if social benefits could also be applied for online.

This article was originally written in German.

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