Berlin: Germany's prospective coalition partners, the center-right Christian Democrats and center-left Social Democrats (SPD), are facing declining voter support as the country anticipates the SPD membership vote on the coalition deal.

According to Anadolu Agency, the latest Forsa poll released on Tuesday revealed that electoral support for chancellor-designate Friedrich Merz's Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) had dropped to 25%, marking a decline of 3.5 percentage points from their February 23 election result.

The SPD is polling at 15%, slightly below their previous election result of 16.4%. Meanwhile, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has surged to a record 26%, representing a five-percentage-point increase since February.

The combined support for the conservative CDU/CSU alliance and center-left SPD has decreased from nearly 45% to 40% over the past two months as voter discontent grows. Pollsters indicate that if elections were held this week, the coalition partners would not secure enough votes to achieve a governing majority in parliament.

Voter frustration with the drawn-out government formation process is seen as a major factor in the declining support for mainstream parties. Despite conservative leader Merz and his CDU/CSU alliance campaigning on promises of stricter immigration controls and swift economic reforms, they have yet to implement any concrete changes during this period.

The political leaders of the Christian Democrats and Social Democrats finalized a coalition agreement in early April, nearly seven weeks after the February 23 parliamentary elections.

The agreement is now pending a crucial vote from the SPD's 358,000 members, who began casting their ballots on April 15. The mini-referendum continues through April 29, with results expected the following day. To pass, the agreement must receive majority support with at least 20% member participation.

The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) will hold a small party conference on April 28 to vote on the agreement, where approval is widely expected. Their Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), has already endorsed the deal.

If all parties approve the agreement, the German parliament could elect Merz as chancellor as early as May 6, replacing the current leader Olaf Scholz.