Crisis in Germany: Scholz ready to bring forward the date of early elections

Face &agrav; As pressure grew, Chancellor Olaf Scholz declared himself open Friday à talks to speed up early elections in Germany after the collapse of its governing coalition.

It is the first time he has spoken on the subject since the thunderbolt on Wednesday evening, when he announced the dismissal of the liberal finance minister Christian Lindner because of deep disagreements on economic policy, and his intention to submit to a vote of confidence of the deputies on January 15.

Under this timetable, early parliamentary elections could not be held before March. But calls are growing for them to be held earlier, if possible in January, at a time when the challenges are numerous for the largest European economy, on the brink of recession and which fears the consequences of a return of Donald Trump at the head of the United States.

Speaking in Budapest on the sidelines of an EU summit, Olaf Scholz hinted at the possibility of a deal with opposition parties, led by the conservatives, if they agreed to support some pending bills.

He called on MPs to have a “calm debate” on the texts that could still be approved by parliament, even though his government is now a minority, supported only by the Social Democrats and the Greens.

This “could help answer the question of when is the right time” for a confidence vote leading to early elections, he added.

– The campaign is launched –

The conservative opposition immediately rejected this outstretched hand, setting the rapid organization of the vote of confidence as a prerequisite for any negotiation.

“First the question of confidence, then we can talk about the subjects”, retorted the deputy Alexander Dobrindt (CSU).

As he no longer has a sufficient parliamentary majority to govern, Olaf Scholz is likely to lose the confidence vote.

President Frank-Walter Steinmeier will then have 21 days to dissolve the Bundestag and new elections will have to be held within 60 days.

According to a poll published on Friday, two-thirds of Germans want new elections without delay.

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“Chancellor, step aside!” wrote the editor-in-chief of Bild, Germany's most widely read newspaper, in an editorial.

Among the texts that the government would like to pass before the dissolution of parliament, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser mentioned the one aimed at protecting the independence of the Constitutional Court, prepared in consensus with the conservatives.

German Chancellor Olaf Schoz on November 8, 2024 in Budapest, Hungary © AFP – Gergely Besenyei

In Budapest, the Chancellor said he felt “a lot of solidarity” from his European peers. “Many tapped me on the shoulder. Many have experience of coalition governments and know that it is increasingly difficult (…)”, he said.

On his return to Germany, he will find a country in the midst of electoral excitement. At the forefront is the leader of the conservative CDU, Friedrich Merz, omnipresent in the media.

“Let Scholz ask the question of confidence next week” during a statement planned for Wednesday, said the 68-year-old leader, who would have a good chance of becoming chancellor in the event of an election.

In the magazine Stern, Merz calls for elections as early as January 19, one day before the inauguration of the American president-elect Donald Trump.

– Video in the kitchen –

The polls credit the CDU and its Bavarian ally CSU with around 34% of the vote, ahead of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), around 17-18%.

On the Green side, Scholz's only remaining ally, Vice-Chancellor and Minister of Economy Robert Habeck announced, in a video filmed in a kitchen, his entry into the race to lead the country.

A profession of faith received with sarcasm by Friedrich Merz who joked about “a candidate for chancellor with 9% of voting intentions”.

But the leader of the conservatives must also expect the complexity of forming a coalition in the event of victory in the elections, because he rejects any alliance with the AfD.

Potential allies will remain the SPD (16%), the Greens, and possibly the liberals of the FDP, former allies of Scholz, if they manage to collect 5% of the votes.

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