Germanys conservatives lead in first exit poll in Schleswig-Holstein state

　　div classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodivpBERLIN Reuters – Former Chancellor Angela Merkels conservatives CDU looked set to make a clear win a regional election in the northern state of SchleswigHolstein on Sunday, in a boost to the party which was ousted from national government in federal elections last year.p

　　pAn exit poll by ARD Tagesschau put the CDU at 43 of the vote, up 11 percentage points compared to the last vote, while the Social Democrats slumped to 15.5. pdivdivdiv classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodiv

　　pThe environmental Greens and the probusiness FDP parties, who have been in a coalition with the conservatives since 2017 scored 17 and 7 respectively.p

　　pThe South Schleswig Party SSW, which represents the ethnic Danish minority, won 6 of the votes while both the farright AfD and farleft Linke parties did not reach the 5 of votes necessary to secure seats in the states parliament. p

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　　pp Reporting by Riham Alkousaa and Maria Sheahanp

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