German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says he will ask for a vote of confidence in December

BERLIN – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Wednesday that he will ask for a vote of confidence on December 16, paving the way for early parliamentary elections in February. He announced his plans a week after his own during a speech in parliament The three-party coalition government collapsed.

Since 2021, Germany has been governed by a coalition led by Scholz’s left-wing Social Democrats, which also included the smaller, pro-business Free Democrats and the Greens. It was an uneasy and fractious alliance, which fell apart when Scholz has fired Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the Free Democrats in an overnight move after disagreements over how to revive the shrinking economy.

“The date at the end of February has now been set and I am very grateful for that,” Scholz said, adding that he would try to pass important legislation through parliament before then, such as financial support for children from poor families, or amendments to the country’s constitution to make the highest court more resilient to possible political interference.

He said he would submit a request for a vote of confidence on December 11 so that the Bundestag can decide on this on December 16. The chancellor initially wanted to hold early elections only at the end of March – before the vote that was due to take place. is normally scheduled for September 2025.

However, the center-right Christian opposition pushed for a faster vote in parliament to speed up the next election.

Finally, party leaders from across the political spectrum agreed on Wednesday on the two dates for the vote of confidence and the new elections on February 23.

During his speech, both Scholz and Friedrich Merz, the head of the main opposition party in parliament, the Christian Democrats, already switched into campaign mode – although the heated part of the campaign usually only starts about six weeks before elections in Germany.

“There is a great sense of relief in our country. For a week now, the so-called progressive coalition… has been history. And that is still good news for Germany,” Merz said to applause from his Christian Democrats when he spoke in parliament after Scholz.

“You are dividing the country, Mr. Chancellor. You are responsible for these controversies and for these divisions in Germany,” Merz attacked Scholz in his speech. ‘You simply cannot govern a country like this.’

He accused the chancellor of trying to delay the confidence vote and said he should have asked for it immediately.

According to Scholz’s announcement on Thursday, his Social Democrats and the Greens will lead the country in a minority government until the chancellor calls for the vote of confidence on December 16, which he is expected to lose. That will then pave the way for new parliamentary elections in just over 100 days, on February 23.

Four candidates are expected to present their bids for the chancellery to voters in February.

Scholz has said he wants to run for chancellor again, even though his party has not yet announced his candidacy.

Merz of the Christian Democrats, who is currently at the top of the polls, was officially nominated as a candidate by his party in September.

According to the environmental activist The Greens, the current Minister of Economy and Vice Chancellor of the country, Robert Habeck, will led his party as a candidate for chancellor.

The Greens is a small party that has lost popularity in recent elections and whose support currently hovers around 10%, meaning it is unlikely that he will ultimately become the country’s leader.

The extreme right alternative for GermanyThe AfD has said it will nominate current party leader Alice Weidel as its candidate next month.

Merz’s Christian Democrats have been scoring around 30% or more in the polls for a year now. Scholz’s Social Democrats, currently the strongest governing party, are in third place with around 16% – behind the AfD, which is at around 19%.

The main campaign issues will likely be the country’s ailing economy This led primarily to the collapse of the government, more efficient control of migration, and – when it comes to foreign policy issues – Russia’s war against Ukraine and the next presidency of Donald Trump.