Europe's Centrists Face Voter Backlash Over Austerity

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's approval ratings have hit record lows as his CDU suffers state election defeats, with the far-right AfD surging. Analysts say years of centrist austerity across Germany, France and the UK have fuelled deindustrialisation, stagnation and public anger, pushing voters toward the ultra-right. The pattern repeats from Berlin to Paris to London.