German state election deals new setback to Merkel

Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition suffered a new setback and Germany's main opposition parties celebrated gains in a state election Sunday that came as Merkel's unpopular government grapples with the eurozone debt crisis and other challenges.

The vote in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a northeastern region where Merkel's parliamentary constituency is located, was the sixth of seven German state elections this year - most of which have gone poorly for the chancellor's center-right coalition.

The center-left Social Democrats, who lead the state government but are in opposition nationally, won nearly 37 percent of Sunday's vote - a gain of more than five points compared with five years ago, according to ARD and ZDF television projections based on exit polls and a partial count.

The other winners were the opposition Greens, who have been riding high in national polls. They were projected to win more than 8 percent and enter the statelegislature for the first time, which national leader Cem Ozdemir called "a true sensation."

Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union, however, was seen sliding to below 24 percent from nearly 29 percent in 2006. And its partner in the national government, the Free Democratic Party, was set to score ust 3 percent - losing two-thirds of its support and its seats in the state legislature.

"The CDU is, of course, disappointed by this election result," senior federal lawmaker Peter Altmaier told ARD. He added that it pointed to the need "to stand together. ... This is the precondition for people to have cofidence in our policies."

Over the coming weeks, Merkel faces the task of swinging skeptical center-right lawmakers in Berlin behind the latest measures designed to rescue economically struggling eurozone countries.