Editor’s Notes (February 24th): This story has been updated.
aThe count ended with the German election, and three things were clear. The first is when the opposition conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) together with Bavarian sister party, Christian Social Union (CSU), wins an overwhelming victory in 29% of the vote. It paves the way for their candidate, Friedrich Merz (pictured) to take over Olaf Scholz as prime minister after the coalition speaks. Second, Germany (AFD)’s stiff right alternative has skyrocketed to the highest ever, at 21%, resulting in nearly double the number of seats in the Vandetag. The party ruled its eastern bases. Party co-leader Alice Weidel welcomed “historic success.” The third is extraordinary voter turnout. Approximately 83% of eligible Germans voted, the highest number since unification 35 years ago.
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Beyond that, it became even more troublesome. Merz hopes to form a coalition with Scholtz’s Social Democrats (SPD). However, under German election rules, whether the main central left and central right parties can form what was known as the “Grand” coalition, the new “left conservative” Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) It could potentially reach the 5% threshold required to gain representatives of the Congress that were entirely dependent on. It’s been very short in pain – 3/100ths of a percentage point. So, CDU/CSU and SPD have probably only 13 seats, but they have a majority and don’t have to team up with Green. The ideologically troubling three-party government is something that Merz wants to avoid, who wants to act decisively to restore faith in German voters’ politics.
Building a coalition with just SPD is not at all easy either. After German standards were rough campaigns, many fear that it will be difficult to build the necessary trust and find the compromises that German Union trade requires. One SPD MP recently described her as “sighing like nausea” due to the epic coalition outlook. Merz did not help his case by suggesting that Eve voted for “green and left wing idiots” and did not own a full marble merchandises. The bigger challenge is his willingness to compromise his proposal to manage irregular immigration to Germany. Merz said his demand for permanent control at the German border and his rejection of asylum seekers is unnegotiable. But both SPD and Green say they are violating domestic and European laws.
Rulers should also find an agreement on loosening the brakes of Germany’s constitutional debt. This makes it impossible for the federal government to operate beyond a small deficit. Germany’s investment needs reach the hundreds of billions, covering everything from repairing crumbling public infrastructure to increasing defence spending. If the special fund is gone, starting 2028, we will need to find at least 300 billion euros ($31 billion) a year, starting at 2028, just to achieve our NATO (increasingly insufficient) target of NATO (increasingly insufficient) target. The budget cuts proposed by Meltz cannot hope to meet these needs. That’s why he has shown openness to ease the brakes on debt.
However, constitutional changes require a two-thirds majority of Parliament. To amend the rules, rulers need support from Greene and Dai Linke, a left-wing party that has surged at an extraordinary last minute, especially among younger voters. As a “Propiece” party, its support will certainly have a higher price if it continues to appear. It could oppose a hard-line lawmaker in the ranks of Merz, who dislikes the left and is skeptical of easing the debt brake in the first place.
As this suggests, the election results barely please those who desperately wanted political clarity in a country that has long lacked it. CDU/CSU victory is primarily a function of government unpopularity. He once wanted to exceed 35% of the vote, but ultimately got a second result. It may revive old doubts within the party over Merz, who confused many Germans by accepting AFD votes to drive anti-immigration moves through last month’s Bandetag. His personal rating is low.
Meanwhile, the miserable performance of SPD stimulates periods of isolated soul quest and clear periods of personnel. (Party co-leader Lars Klingbale is a number to look at now. He will now lead the party’s parliamentary group.) “It’s a bitter outcome and it hurts,” says Alexander Schweitzer. told economists about the state of Rhineland paratinate. The only party to celebrate clearly is the two fringe outfits, AFD and Die Link, without hoping to enter the government.
Typically, such results stimulate unabolic gaze among major German political parties before settling in coalition consultations. But this time it’s different. Donald Trump overturned diplomacy around Ukraine and forced Europe to a nest of panic activity. A minute after the closure of the polls in Germany’s Antonio Costa, president of the Council of Europe, called for a special EU summit on March 6 to discuss security in Ukraine and Europe. Scholtz will be present at the meeting as Prime Minister until a German successor is elected to host. However, he needs to consult closely with the man who will replace him.
On his part, Merz appears to understand that structural changes in geopolitics under Trump will not give him the luxury of time. Speaking shortly after his victory, he meditated on the possibility of an “independent European defensive ability” to replace NATO, saying, “It is an absolute priority to strengthen Europe as soon as possible, and from the US “We will achieve independence of the company.” Before the election, he had raised the prospects for nuclear cooperation with France or the UK to replace the American umbrella. Informal consultations with the French have already been held. These are extraordinary statements from men who have been ingrained in CDU’s transatlanticism. But these are extraordinary times. ■
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