The margin of defeat for the incumbent Ahlhaus Senate is the largest in post-war German history and has not been met since.

Much of this lost support flowed to the Social Democratic Party (SPD), which won 62 of the 121 seats in Parliament, forming a majority government led by Olaf Scholz.

This was the first time such a government had been formed in Germany, as the Greens were seen as aligned with the SPD, typically in opposition to the CDU.

After his retirement in August 2010 and the election of Christoph Ahlhaus as his successor, relations between the two parties became increasingly strained.

[6] Ahlhaus formed a minority CDU Senate and the Parliament subsequently voted to dissolve itself and hold early elections.