Germany's conservative CDU is projected to win elections in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, according to forecasts from public broadcasters ARD and ZDF.
State Premier Daniel Günther's CDU came in clearly ahead of the environmentalist Greens and the centre-left SPD, and considerably improved its vote share compared to the last election in 2017.
The SPD, which at the national level is currently leading a coalition government with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the helm, plunged to its worst-ever result in a state election in Schleswig-Holstein and could end up behind the Greens.
For the CDU, it was the first electoral success in almost a year after a series of defeats at federal level and in several states - most recently in Saarland.
Of greater importance, however, is next Sunday's state election in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state, which is often referred to as the "small Bundestag election."
North Rhine-Westphalia's state premier Hendrik Wüst celebrated the win of his CDU party in Schleswig-Holstein, saying that it was a good sign for the state's elections next week. Opinion polls, however, show a tight race between the CDU and the SPD.
According to the latest figures after polling stations closed at 6 pm (1600 GMT), the CDU was projected to take between 43,5% of votes, a big step up from the 32% it had in the 2017 elections. The Greens had 18%, while the pro-business FDP came at 6,4%.
The SPD, led by top candidate Thomas Losse-Müller, is expected to receive 16% of the vote - even worse than the 25.4% it won in 2009.
The CDU's Günther, 48, now has various options to form his coalition. He could continue the triple alliance with the Greens and the FDP, but now a two-party coalition is possible.
In front of cheering supporters, Günther spoke of an "enormous vote of confidence, an enormous support of course, also for me personally."
The politician reminded that before the elections he said he would prefer to continue the alliance with the Greens and the FDP, and stressed he would hold talks with both parties.
Around 2.3 million citizens in Schleswig-Holstein were eligible to decide on the composition of the state parliament. Voter turnout was estimated at 63%.
After the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, high energy and fuel prices played an important role in the election campaign, along with demands for further relief.
The expansion of renewable energies, especially wind power in rural areas, was also one of the most important topics.
