{"id":"d938afd1-e4a0-4053-a040-f09e3c7bb4ac","url":"https://www.npr.org/2026/09/21/g-s1-144231/germany-state-elections-merz","domain":"npr.org","outlet":{"name":"NPR","country":"US","cred":5,"lean":-1,"curated":true},"title":"German chancellor stands his ground after his party loses in state elections","plainHeadline":"German Chancellor Freidrich Merz says he will push ahead with his federal tax and welfare reform agenda after party loss.","rewrite":{"model":null,"at":null},"summary":[],"topics":["Politics","Economy"],"lang":"eng","publishedAt":"2026-09-21T09:00:00.000Z","ingestedAt":"2026-09-21T09:26:50.169Z","story":"https://brief.concise.news/story/76f7dd09-362c-4eaa-8414-e3d3bda1b780","storyId":"76f7dd09-362c-4eaa-8414-e3d3bda1b780","image":"https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6211x4143+0+0/resize/6211x4143!/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F5f%2Fb9%2F40663d144d0c832afd763d006499%2Fgettyimages-2295702844.jpg","author":"Esme Nicholson","dek":"German Chancellor Freidrich Merz conceded that the night spells \"disaster\" for the political center, but assured the public he'd push ahead with his federal agenda of tax and welfare reforms."}