“There are also a whole series of international commitments, conferences and decisions in the European Union that now require a German federal government that is capable of acting,” Merz said. “We simply cannot afford to have a government without a majority in Germany for several months.”
Merz’s call is piling up pressure on Scholz, who had announced his intention to lead a minority government consisting of his SPD and the Greens with the aim of passing key bills, including a 2025 budget, before the end of the year. To pass legislation, however, Scholz would probably need support from Merz’s CDU, which now seems unlikely.
Christian Lindner, the departing finance minister — who was dismissed by Scholz on Wednesday — and leader of the fiscally conservative Free Democratic Party (FDP) echoed Merz’s call for an immediate vote of confidence.
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“The chancellery must not become an election campaign center,” Lindner said on Thursday. “Our country needs a government that is not just in office, but one that can act,” he added. “In a democracy, nobody should be afraid of the voters.”
For the party leaders, there is also a clear political calculus behind the disagreement over the snap election timing.
Merz’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), are currently leading in polls by a wide margin, with 32 percent support, and are set to lead any future coalition government. Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SPD), on the other hand, is polling in third place with 16 percent, just behind the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.