It is "only" local elections. But it is the first election in Germany since the nationwide government took office in May. The coalition includes the conservative Christian Democratic Union and their Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) and the center-left Social Democrats (SPD). "It is effectively a litmus test for the federal government," Oliver Lembcke, a political scientist at the Ruhr University Bochum, told DW of the vote in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) on September 14. The Social Democrats in particular face a further decline in their former heartland, while the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is gaining in the polls. The election is also meaningful because the western state is Germany's most populous, with 18 million residents. Its economic and societal diversity also makes it a microcosm of the country. It contains large cities such as Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, plus rural areas, industry and services as well as agriculture. The structural change in the Ruhr district transitioning from coal and steel production toward the service sector, is a development reflected in many areas. In NRW, one in every four residents has an immigration background, the same as Germany overall. Chancellor Friedrich Merz (left) and Premier Hendrik Wüst shaking handsChancellor Friedrich Merz (left) and Premier Hendrik Wüst shaking hands Chancellor Friedrich Merz (left ) and NRW Premier Hendrik Wüst have been demonstrating unity in the election campaignImage: Revierfoto/IMAGO A test for Chancellor Merz The local elections are widely seen both as a test case for the federal government of Merz, who hails from NRW, but also for state Premier Hendrik Wüst and his state government. Fifty-year-old Wüst (CDU) has been governing with the Green Party since 2022 and has been tipped as a possible successor to 69-year-old Friedrich Merz. While they have had their disagreements in the past, this week the two men are now demonstrating unity. The election results will impact not only the two politicians and their CDU party, but also the Social Democrats and SPD Labor Minister Bärbel Bas, who hails from the Ruhr Valley town of Duisburg. That region has always been considered to be the SPD's home turf, the "heart of social democracy." Coalfields in transition 05:15 Feeling let down by politics On September 14, city and municipal councils, county councils, mayors and district administrators will be voted in — about 20,000 seats in total. In local government elections, individuals often play a more important role than parties: Local representatives are on the ground, dealing with grassroots issues, for example, schools, local public transport and the local economy. That is why people sometimes vote for a different party than in the federal elections, which focus on "big picture" policies. However, it is already clear: Many people in NRW are dissatisfied with the state of their communities, especially with the infrastructure, said Oliver Lembcke: "Streets, bridges, local transport, schools — people are very quickly dissatisfied, especially if they feel those in power are not taking care of it." But it is not all about local problems. "We are also seeing on the campaign trail that topics which are matters for the federal government also play a part: especially immigration; being overwhelmed by immigration, the integration demands of immigration." Fixing these problems are not necessarily the domain of local politics, but "they still matter for this election," according to Lembcke.