Merkel's party wins German northern state election

Berlin (Germany)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's party on Sunday secured a victory in Schleswig-Holstein state.

Exit Polls and early returns broadcast by ARD television showed Merkel's Christian Democrats, headed by local candidate Daniel Guenther ,were in the lead with 32.8 percent of the vote, ahead of the second-place Social Democrats who had 26.7 percent.

Germans in the northernmost state of Schleswig-Holstein voted on Sunday in a closely watched regional election. The poll is being seen as a test of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's popularity ahead September 24 federal election.

Merkel of Conservative Christian Democratic Union is seeking a fourth term.

For the past five years, the northern state has been governed by a coalition led by the center-left Social Democratic party. Voting in North Rhine-Westphalia will take place next week. "Though Merkel's centre-right Christian Democrats have held power in the national Parliament since 2005, her party has suffered a string of defeats in country's 16 states over that period," New York Times reported.

Many leaders criticized Merkel's policy of allowing entry of hundreds of thousands of migrants from the Middle East and Africa.