Two days after a coalition of conservatives won Germany’s federal election last month, the governor of Bavaria took to Instagram to say the party was “ready for political change” and posted a group picture of the likely future chancellor, Friedrich Merz, with five other leaders. The photo seemed to suggest that a changed Germany will…
The German Parliament is set to vote on Tuesday on a plan to loosen government borrowing limits in order to spend heavily on defense and infrastructure, in an effort to offset America’s pivot away from Europe and to lift the country out of years of economic stagnation. If the measure eventually becomes law, it will…
Germany’s centrist politicians are losing votes to the far right and the far left. They are losing faith in America, their longtime friend and protector. And they are rapidly losing what could be their best chance to address both those problems at once. The German government in waiting, led by the likely next chancellor, Friedrich…
In Britain, a languishing prime minister is suddenly a statesman, while his up-and-coming populist rival has been thrown on his heels. In Canada, the incumbent Liberal Party has a chance to win an election long thought out of reach. In Germany, the incoming center-right chancellor is dominating the agenda after an election many feared would…
Ever since the Berlin Wall fell and the country reunited, Germans could be expected to keep budget deficits relatively low, military spending even lower, and politics at a plodding pace. The next German government is smashing all those traditions before it even takes office. Friedrich Merz, the leader of the center-right Christian Democrats and the…
Three and a half decades after reunification, a line runs through Germany where the Iron Curtain once stood. Instead of barbed wires and dogs, that line now divides Germans by measures like income and unemployment — and increasingly by the willingness to vote for extremist parties. If East Germany were still its own country, the…
The hard-right Alternative for Germany might not have done as well in Sunday’s election as its leaders had hoped, but its groundbreaking performance was enough for a congratulatory phone call from Elon Musk. Alice Weidel, the chancellor candidate for the party, known by its German initials, AfD, told journalists on Monday morning that she had…
Germany’s presumptive next chancellor could be weak from the start, for all sorts of reasons. He didn’t win a particularly high share of votes. Most Germans don’t think he’ll make a great leader. Many of the people who backed his party in Sunday’s elections say they’re not enthused with him, personally. And yet Friedrich Merz…
Germany is getting a new chancellor. Its current leader is heading out of power, but his party probably will stick around in a diminished capacity. And the Trump administration’s efforts to influence the vote don’t seem to have done much. Sunday’s election, which came months ahead of schedule after the country’s governing coalition crumbled late…
How the 630 seats will be distributed Germany’s conservative Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) won Sunday’s election as voters rebuked the nation’s left-leaning government for its handling of the economy and immigration. Provisional results by party Party Votes Pct. Seats CDU/CSU 14,158,432 28.52 208 AfD 10,327,148 20.80 152 SPD 8,148,284 16.41 120 Greens 5,761,476 11.61 85 Die…