Far-right German parties link to fight 2006 poll

Germany's two leading far-right political parties agreed, 31 October 2004, to make a joint bid in 2006 elections to win seats in the federal parliament. The unprecedented move underlines the parties' determination to set aside differences and build on recent poll successes. Leaders of the National Democratic party (NPD) and the German People's Union (DVU) agreed at a national NPD conference near Erfurt, eastern Germany, that the NPD would represent both parties in the 2006 elections, with some DVU candidates running on the NPD ticket. The DVU would play the leading role in European parliamentary elections in 2009.