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Germany's close election limits its ability to lead Europe
Quick Take

Germany's close election limits its ability to lead Europe

Ian Bremmer's Quick Take: Germany’s election results are in, with the far-right AfD party expanding their vote share to second place. Ian Bremmer looks at what the outcome means for the future of Europe and the transatlantic alliance.

​Christian Democratic Union party leader Friedrich Merz speaks at the party headquarters after the exit poll results are announced for the 2025 general election, in Berlin, Germany, on Feb. 23, 2025.
What We're Watching

Conservatives come first, far right second in German election

As expected, the conservative Christian Democratic Union and its sister party, the Christian Social Union, came out on top in Germany’s election on Sunday with 28.6% of the vote. But the biggest celebrations were held by those supporting the far-right Alternative for Germany, or AfD, which scored a second-place finish with 20.8%, doubling its share of the vote since the last election. It beat the centrist SPD’s 16.4% and the Greens’ 11.6%.

​German conservative CDU candidate for chancellor Friedrich Merz attends a campaign event in Vechta, Germany, on Feb. 19, 2025.
What We're Watching

Election-eve shifts in Germany?

The CDU/CSU is very likely to win, making Friedrich Merz the country’s new chancellor. But he’s likely to lead a coalition government with a weak mandate, in part because he has vowed to reject any cooperation with the AfD.

​A general view of the German lower house of parliament, in Berlin, Germany.
What We're Watching

Germany to hold early elections

Under a plan agreed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the opposition, Europe’s largest economy is now headed toward early elections in February.

Germany faces political uncertainty after coalition collapse
GZERO Europe

Germany faces political uncertainty after coalition collapse

What does Germany's coalition collapse mean for Chancellor Scholz, the country, and Europe as a whole? Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden and co-chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations, shares his perspective on European politics from Stockholm, Sweden.

​Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) attends the wreath-laying ceremony at Fronhof in memory of the victims of the knife attack at the Solingen town festival. I
What We're Watching

What do East German elections mean for next year’s national election?

The far right prevailed in East Germany over the weekend, with the Alternative for Germany party, or AfD, winning its first-ever election in Thuringia and nearly winning in Saxony.

Migrants on board a ship which disembarked in Salerno, Italy.
News

Olaf Scholz gets tough on asylum-seekers

The German government on Wednesday announced that authorities will start conducting “flexible spot checks” on border crossings from Poland and the Czech Republic to address an influx of asylum-seekers who have sought to enter the country in recent months.

2021: Groundhog Day in a G-Zero world
Economy

2021: Groundhog Day in a G-Zero world

Did 2021 actually happen, or are we still stuck in 2020? In many ways it feels like a year of dashed hopes. Let’s have a look back at what did, and did not happen in 2021.

Enter Olaf — can he keep Germany’s traffic light blinking?
News

Enter Olaf — can he keep Germany’s traffic light blinking?

The pragmatic, robotic, determined leader of the German social democrats now holds the reins of Europe’s largest economy. But he leads a tricky three-way coalition government, and faces a few immediate and longer-term challenges.

Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD) candidate for chancellor Olaf Scholz delivers a statement in Berlin, Germany, November 17, 2021.
News

What We're Watching: Germany's next government taking shape

Who's going to run Germany? With coalition negotiations now reportedly in the home stretch, we could know what the next German government looks like as soon as Monday or Tuesday.