epa02593745 The frontrunner of Hamburg's SPD party, Olaf Scholz, stands next to a city crest (seen from behind) after the first prognosis of the Hamburg parliamentary election in a television studio in Hamburg, Germany, 20 February 2011. Germany's opposition Social Democratic Party (SPD) with its candidate Olaf Scholz was on course to win the state of Hamburg outright, capturing 49.6 per cent of votes in a state election, a first vote-count projection for ARD television said 19 February. The result would give them 63 of the 121 seats in the state parliament and therefore an absolute majority. Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), with incumbent governor Christoph Ahlhaus, suffered a major loss, falling to only 21 per cent of votes after nine years in power.  EPA/Carsten Rehder