Chancellor’s Party Trounced in State Vote

Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder’s party suffered a bitter defeat in state elections that focused on the stagnant condition of Germany’s economy.

Gov. Edmund Stoiber’s Christian Social Union won 60.7% of the vote in Bavaria, where it has governed for 40 years, official results showed. Schroeder’s Social Democrats had 19.6% -- their worst showing in the state since World War II.

Stoiber, who narrowly lost to Schroeder in national elections last September, called the result a “vote of no confidence” in the federal government. But he did not say whether he would challenge Schroeder again in three years.