BERLIN — Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany is anticipated to request a vote of confidence in his government on December 16, which could swiftly lead to another parliamentary election possibly taking place as soon as February, according to reports from German media on Tuesday.
This anticipated vote in the Bundestag is set to occur much earlier than initially planned, representing a strategic effort to achieve a compromise between Scholz’s Social Democrats and the primary opposing party, the center-right Christian Democrats.
The necessity for this action arises following the breakdown of Scholz’s three-party coalition last week. Initially, the Chancellor had proposed holding the confidence vote on January 15, potentially setting the stage for an election in March, but the timeline has now been accelerated, with the vote originally scheduled for September.
In a statement to public broadcaster ARD, Scholz expressed that he had no issues with calling the confidence vote ahead of Christmas, indicating a willingness to comply with any agreement established between the Social Democrats and Christian Democrats.
The precise timing of the forthcoming election—likely to be February 16 or February 23—will ultimately be determined by German President Franz-Walter Steinmeier.
Following his decision to dismiss Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the pro-business Free Democrats, thereby eliminating their role in the coalition, Scholz announced the continuation of his governance with a minority government.
Currently remaining in coalition with the environmentalist Greens, Scholz aims to garner support from the Christian Democrats, now led by Friedrich Merz, to facilitate the passage of crucial legislation and address a significant shortfall in the 2025 budget.
Merz strongly opposed Scholz’s initial intention to delay the confidence vote until January. Should the government fail to secure a positive outcome from the confidence vote, which appears more probable, President Steinmeier holds the authority to dissolve the Bundestag within 21 days and initiate a new election.
