German Chancellor Olaf Scholz loses vote of confidence

The Bundestag has revoked its confidence in Chancellor Olaf Schulz, paving the way for new elections in Germany on February 23.

The result of trust issues

As announced by Bundestag Speaker Baber Bass, in the vote of confidence, 207 MPs voted for Scholz, 394 opposed and 116 abstained. As expected, the Chancellor apparently failed to secure the necessary majority of 367 votes.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) proposed to Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at Berlin's Bellevue Palace that the National Assembly should be dissolved after the Bundestag voted against the confidence vote. The German news agency DPA learned of the news from government sources. Steinmeier now has 21 days to decide whether to agree and call for new parliamentary elections within 60 days.

Since all parties in the Bundestag are in favor, Steinmeier's approval is a certainty. He has said he believes the February 23 election date set by the government and the opposition Christian Democrats is realistic.

Scholz on Lindner: 'Weeks of destruction'

The debate ahead of the vote has been completely dominated by the campaign. Scholz used his speech to launch a scathing attack on the FDP. He said the Liberal Party's “weeks of sabotage” under party leader Christian Lindner had damaged not just the “traffic light” government but democracy as a whole. “Joining government requires a necessary level of moral maturity.”

Scholz's “traffic light” coalition collapsed on November 6 over the debt brake dispute. At the time, Scholz fired Finance Minister and FDP leader Christian Lindner, who refused to suspend the debt brake.

Olaf Scholz during a speech on Monday.Image: trapezoid

Scholz touched only briefly on the issue of trust during his nearly 30-minute speech. It’s about citizens being able to redefine Germany’s political course. “Therefore, I offer a vote of confidence to the voters today.” Scholz then spent most of his half-hour speech explaining what plan he wanted to use to convince voters to vote for the Social Democrats.

Merz to Scholz: “You are embarrassing Germany”

Friedrich Merz, leader of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group and candidate for chancellor, called the attack on Lindner “purely disrespectful” in his response. In return, the opposition leader accused Scholz of leaving the country during one of the worst economic crises in post-war history and of failing at EU level. “You are embarrassing Germany,” he said. The German chancellor's actions in the EU are “a disgrace to others”.

Federal Chancellor candidate Merz.Image: trapezoid

Lindner told Scholz: As chancellor, he did not want to hold a “Prince's Carnival”

Lindner also hit back at the chancellor's economic policy, which ignores the profound problem of a lack of competitiveness. Lindner cited Scholz's recent proposal to lower the value-added tax on food as an example. “A carnival prince can be popular by handing out camels on Rose Monday. But the Federal Republic of Germany must not be governed that way.”

Christian Lindner from the FDP.Image: trapezoid

Chancellor's only new electoral lever

Scholz was accompanied to the Bundestag by his wife Britta Ernst. For him, a vote of confidence is the only way to hold an early federal election. He had already announced this step after the FDP Finance Minister Lindner was dismissed on November 6 and ended the traffic light alliance, but in fact he did not want to wait until January to take this step, otherwise a new meeting would be held a month later election.

Scholz has since led a government backed by the Social Democrats and the Greens, who no longer have a majority in the Bundestag. Without the support of the opposition, she could achieve nothing more.

Three AfD MPs want to vote for Scholz

How many of the 207 yes votes came from the Social Democrats will only become clear later in the afternoon when the voting behavior of individual MPs is released. This is exactly the number of SPD representatives. But the AfD's vote for Scholz was expected.

However, the Green Party leadership recommended that its 117 MPs abstain. This was done to rule out the possibility that Scholz had inadvertently gained a majority on AfD votes.

Alice Weidel, AfD candidate for prime minister.Image: trapezoid

Alternative for Germany leader Alice Weidel said before the vote that three members of her group wanted to vote for Scholz. Wedel said they were concerned about plans by “War Chancellor Friedrich Merz” to send Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. She didn't name anyone. According to the dpa news agency, these people are MPs Jürgen Pohl, Christina Baum and Edgar Naujok. It is understood that one or two MPs may also abstain from voting.

Steinmeier: “We don't want to be crowded together now”

In the coming days, Federal President Steinmeier hopes to hold talks with all parliamentary and Bundestag groups, representing eight political parties.

It is the duty of the Federal President to examine whether there are other ways of forming a stable government. Steinmeier said this was “good state practice in Germany” in an ARD interview published over the weekend. “We should not be huddled together now. The busy rhythm of daily politics and the rhythm of the media does not determine further procedures, but the constitution and its rules.” (Sudanese Development Authority/Department of Political Affairs)

The Bundestag has revoked its confidence in Chancellor Olaf Schulz, paving the way for new elections in Germany on February 23.

As announced by Bundestag Speaker Baber Bass, in the vote of confidence, 207 MPs voted for Scholz, 394 opposed and 116 abstained. As expected, the Chancellor apparently failed to secure the necessary majority of 367 votes.