The traffic light coalition in Berlin lacks charisma, according to the findings of Schleswig-Holstein Prime Minister Daniel Günther (CDU) in an FAZ interview at the beginning of April.

On Wednesday evening, this also seems to apply to the first television trill in the history of the northernmost German state.

On May 8, voters in the north are called upon to elect a new state parliament.

And two politicians and one politician are applying for the office of prime minister: in addition to Günther, these are the former Green Finance Minister Monika Heinold and the SPD politician and ex-Green Thomas Losse-Müller.

Anna Lena Ripperger

Editor in Politics.

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There is hardly any trace of a competitive atmosphere during long stretches of the hour-long broadcast on RTL Nord.

On the one hand, this may be due to the fact that Günther and Heinold have governed together so far – and would probably continue to work together after the election.

On the other hand, the war in Ukraine pushed the state election campaign into the background.

At the beginning of the show, the Prime Minister says that you sometimes feel “a bit stupid” when you talk about trivial topics while people are being killed in the middle of Europe.

However, one should not let Russian President Vladimir Putin dictate “how we conduct election campaigns in our country”.

Neither can he just lean back, Günther insists,

A sure victory for Günther?

Günther and his CDU are actually in a very comfortable position.

A survey by Infratest dimap at the end of March puts it at 36 percent.

Then follow at a clear distance the SPD with 20 and the Greens with 18 percent.

The FDP, which currently governs in Kiel together with the CDU and the Greens in a Jamaica coalition, comes to eight percent.

A continuation of the current government alliance would thus be possible.

Should the CDU actually end up with more than 35 percent, Günther would have improved his party's election result by a few percentage points compared to the last election in 2017 - and the Union after the bitter defeat in Saarland and before the state elections in North Rhine-Westphalia a week later given hope.

An Insa survey from the beginning of April on behalf of the “Bild” newspaper paints a different picture: the CDU and SPD are almost on par here.

"I know the wallet"

In the end, when it comes to forming a government, it should primarily depend on the FDP – and the Greens.

Your top candidate, 63-year-old Monika Heinold, is acting as a solid housekeeper that evening.

She repeatedly accuses her competitors Günther and Losse-Müller of advertising with election promises that cannot be financed.

For example in childcare.

"I know the wallet," she says, referring to the SPD's promise to create free daycare places in the long term.

In essence, this is also a heartfelt wish of her party, but one that cannot be financed at the moment.

"When Mr. Losse-Müller says the money is there, then he knows a different fund than I do." That's why the Greens are initially focusing on improving the quality of childcare, says Heinold.