After Sunday’s federal elections, Friedrich Merz, leader of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union, looks set to become Germany’s Chancellor after winning 28.5 per cent of the vote.
Germany’s electoral system uses proportional representation. This means a party’s seat share in parliament is the same as their share of the vote.
In order to hold a majority, Merz’s CDU/CSU is likely to form a coalition with the defeated centre-left Social Democratic Party, which won 16.4 per cent of the vote.
The SPD’s Olaf Scholz, Chancellor of Germany from 2021 to 2025, has announced his decision to step down as party leader.
The election campaign featured much discussion of immigration. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) nearly doubled its electoral tally from the last federal election in 2021. This time, they came in second with 20.8 per cent of the vote.
In Germany, far-right parties are subject to a “firewall.” This means other parties refuse to work or cooperate with the AfD.
This comes as American Vice President J.D Vance said the firewall prevented views form being heard. Elon Musk went further and endorsed the AfD.
In the last week of the campaign, the focus turned to Ukraine. Merz vowed to maintain and expand Germany’s support for Ukraine.
In response to concerns over American President Donald Trump’s ideas for Ukraine, Merz said he wanted to achieve “independence from the U.S, step by step.”
Image: “Friedrich Merz, EPP Political Assembly, 04-05 May, Munich (cropped)” by European People’s Party is licensed under CC BY 2.0.