Merkel Approval Rating Drops to Four-Year Low on Refugee Crisis

German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s approval rating dropped to the lowest in almost four years in a monthly poll that suggests voters’ welcome for hundreds of thousands of refugees is exhausted.

The share of Germans who are satisfied with Merkel’s handling of her job fell 9 percentage points to 54 percent in the Infratest Dimap poll, the lowest since December 2011, broadcaster ARD said in a statement Friday. Backing for Horst Seehofer, the Bavarian state premier who has called Merkel’s refugee policy a “mistake,” gained 11 points to 39 percent.