Martin Schulz, leader of Germany's Social Democrats | John MacDougall/AFP via Getty Images Germany’s Social Democrats only 4 points ahead of far-right AfD SPD drops to new low in polls as it enters formal coalition talks with Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc.

BERLIN — A new poll places Martin Schulz’s Social Democrats (SPD) only four points ahead of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

If there were an election today, the SPD would receive 18 percent of the vote while the AfD would receive 14, according to an INSA poll published Tuesday.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats and Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union, would receive 31.5 percent. The Greens and Free Democrats (FDP), meanwhile, would come in at 10 percent, and the Left at 11 percent. The AfD has remained steady at 14 percent for the past several weeks.

The results mark a new low for the SPD, which suffered a major defeat in September's federal election, when it received 20.5 percent of the vote.

The AfD, meanwhile, has seen a rise from its September result of 12.6 percent.

The poll comes days after SPD party delegates voted to enter formal coalition talks with Merkel's conservatives. The decision was made by a close margin, with 362 delegates voting in favor and 279 voting against.

Among those surveyed, 38 percent said they welcome the SPD's decision to start formal talks to form a grand coalition, while 42 percent are against it.

The same poll found that 32 percent support the formation of a new grand coalition, while 17 percent favor a minority government, and 27 percent would like to see a new election. Some 15 percent of Germans said they would prefer a Jamaica coalition between the CDU/CSU, FDP and the Greens.