The world awaits German elections after Merkel's era

Photo Credit: AP

The first female chancellor in Germany leaves office after 16 years of leadership. 

This Sunday, on the 26th of September, Germans will elect the person who will try to fill Merkel’s shoes. In the starting holes are Olaf Scholz from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), Armin Laschet from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), and then Annalena Baerbock from the Green Party.
 
After the third television debate, the SPD is still leading the Conservatives by only three percentage points with their left-leaning election program, which means higher taxation of the rich, more social policies, a pro-EU stance, and flexible debt brake rules. 

Olaf Scholz is already the actual Vice-chancellor and the minister of finance but is not considered as the continuity of Angela Merkel. Scholz's political style is more the opposite of Merkel’s, who is strongly against a social-democratic leadership in the government as she underlined in a recent speech.

Scholz represents a new vision of governing, instead of either-or, he says: “All together”. By that, he also means working together and not working against each other within the European Union. 

Furthermore, the SPD proposes more solidarity and equality towards people outside the EU, which includes language classes, school, and working rights for everyone who comes to Germany from day one. 

Olaf Scholz also focuses more on renewing the bonds with Russia and the eastern European countries instead of an orientation towards the West.

Armin Laschet is the partisan successor of Angela Merkel and the current prime minister of the largest state in Germany, the North Rhine-Westphalia. Compared to the SPD, the CDU is playing it save by focusing on preserving their values and keeping things like they were. No changes in tax-paying or the debt brake rules. Nothing new shows in their proposition in foreign policy. The Union wants to keep the United States close to be able to meet China on the same economic level.

Especially on an international level, it will be difficult to replace Angela Merkel. She speaks Russian, so therefore she was able to maintain good relations with Putin. She is fascinated by China and not threatened by them. She knows how to keep her friends and enemies close without prioritizing over one and neglecting others. 

Emmanuel Macron, the French President with whom she formed a strong force in the EU and on an international level, leans currently towards the SPD candidate Olaf Scholz as he is already used to the responsibilities of high office or other leaders in Europe.

According to the recent polls, the SPD is ahead of the CDU and the Green Party but will not have the majority in the parliament. Therefore they will choose other parties to build a strong-leading coalition. 

In the run are the Green Party, the left-wing party “Die Linke” or the FDP (Free Democratic Party). Several combinations are possible, which makes the decision-making for the Germans even harder. This Sunday, the waiting comes to an end, and Germany and the world will know with whom they have to deal at least the next four years to come.


Article by Julia Zimmermann
PUKmedia