The accomplishment makes the AfD the first nationalist party to lead the polls since the foundation of the modern Republic of Germany.

AfD led the Ipsos poll with 25% support, up 4 points from its February election result. The Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union slipped to 24%, down from 28.6%. Support for the Social Democratic Party continued to fall, landing at 15%. The left-wing Linke Party rose 2 points to 11%, while the Greens dipped slightly to the same level.

The poll interviewed 1,000 German voters on April 5.

The results mark a slight improvement from an earlier survey this week by the INSA institute for Bild newspaper, which showed the CDU and AfD tied at 24% support.

AfD co-chairwoman Alice Weidel celebrated the development in a post on X.

“For the first time in the AfD’s short history, we are the strongest party in Germany. Thank you for your tremendous trust — political change will come!” she wrote.

“Citizens want political change — not a ‘business as usual’ coalition between the CDU/CSU and SPD!” she said in another post.

Her remarks were reposted by Elon Musk, a new major international backer of the party.

AfD’s position as Germany’s most popular party will further chip away at the other major parties’ cordon sanitaire. The refusal to work with the AfD already showed signs of weakness earlier this year, when the CDU began adopting some of its rhetoric and voted with it for the first time.

AfD’s new position may also shutter talks of outright banning the party, a controversial proposal that split mainstream lawmakers.

The poll came the same day CDU leader Friedrich Merz announced successful coalition talks with the SPD, with him set to become chancellor. The six-and-a-half-week negotiations, however, eroded his support as the CDU shifted leftward on immigration and the economy to accommodate the SPD.

ALTERNATIVE FOR GERMANY PARTY GOES MAINSTREAM AFTER HISTORIC VOTE ON IMMIGRATION RESTRICTIONS

Manfred Güllner, head of the Forsa polling group, told the Wall Street Journal that Merz’s reversal on fiscal policy, announcing a historic increase in defense spending after pledging to cut spending altogether, had undermined faith in his leadership. A Wednesday Forsa poll found that over a quarter of CDU supporters and 60% of voters think Merz is unfit to serve as chancellor. The CDU’s youth wing signaled they do not support Merz as chancellor.

Merz will need to balance his left-wing coalition partner’s unpopular pro-immigration stance, a fiscal crisis, and an impending trade war with the United States as chancellor. The problems are likely to further crater the CDU’s support, which is likely to go to the ascendant AfD.