Shortly after it was announced that the ruling German, so-called "traffic light coalition" failed, there were loud demands to hold early elections as soon as possible. Faster than chancellor Olaf Šolc imagined.
That social democrat announced on Wednesday evening that he intends to ask a question of confidence in the government on January 15 in the Bundestag, which means that early elections could be held at the end of March.
The opposition, however, demands that the question of confidence in the government and the chancellor be raised immediately, so that extraordinary elections can be held already in January. This is supported by even two thirds of Germans (64 percent).
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On the other hand, 33 percent of them support the chancellor's plan to ask the question of confidence only in mid-January, according to a representative survey of the Infratest dimap agency conducted for the public service ARD among 1.065 citizens with the right to vote.
Great dissatisfaction with governments
Soltz explained his plan by saying that he wants to push through important laws by the end of the year, and for this purpose he asked for the cooperation of the opposition Christian Democrats CDU and CSU.
For his part, CDU President Friedrich Mertz explained that the German President, after raising the question of confidence, still has 21 days to dissolve the current convocation of the Bundestag.
During that period, Merz promises, the parliamentary group of his Christian Democrats will check which legal projects can still be adopted - but with the condition that the chancellor paves the way for quick early elections with a vote of confidence.
Citizens mostly attribute the responsibility for the end of the German government to the liberals (FDP), whose head is also the now former finance minister Christian Lindner.
Forty percent of those surveyed believe that this party is most responsible for the end of the coalition, one in four (26 percent) believes that it is the Greens, and only one in five (19 percent) considers the party of chancellor Šolc, the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), responsible.
The majority of Germans, according to that survey, welcome the end of the "traffic light coalition": 59 percent consider it "very good", i.e. "good", more than one in three (36 percent) consider it "less good", i.e. "bad".
It is obvious that the citizens are still very dissatisfied with the work of the government, which at the end of October fell to the lowest levels in terms of support: only 14 percent of the citizens were satisfied with Olaf Scholz's government at that time.
Only four times in the 27-year history of conducting the ARD survey was that percentage lower. This even happened three times during the second mandate of the Social Democrats and the Greens, which ended in 2005 also with early elections.
The Christian Democrats are leading in the polls
If elections were held already this Sunday, the SPD would win 16 percent of the vote, the same as during the last survey a few weeks ago. The Christian Democrats, CDU and CSU, would be the strongest political force in Germany with 34 percent, while the Greens would improve minimally and would have 12 percent (+1). The FDP's rating also improved minimally, but with the five percent they would win, they would be on the border of the electoral census.
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) slightly improved its rating - 18 percent (+1) and thus remained the second strongest force. Sara Vagenkneht's alliance (BSW) would (unchanged) win six percent of the vote. All other parties together would win nine percent, including the Left and Free Voters, which means that these parties would not enter the Bundestag.
Whenever early parliamentary elections are held - and the regular date was supposed to be September 28, 2025 - every second German (46 percent) believes that the future government will be led by the Christian Democrats, CDU and CSU.
Thirteen percent believe that the SPD could be at the head of the next government, nine percent see the AfD, and eight percent believe that it could be the Greens.
Šolc disputed as chancellor candidate
The current German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, announced some time ago that he wants him to be the SPD's candidate for chancellor in the next elections as well. However, this is also controversial among his party supporters: 45 percent of SPD supporters believe that Scholz would be a good candidate, but 47 percent think that it would not be a good solution.
And the general assessment of citizens with the right to vote on the work and performance of the chancellor remains negative: currently only 21 percent of them are "very satisfied" or "satisfied" with his work, and 76 percent are "less satisfied" or "dissatisfied".
Economy Minister Robert Habek (Greens) improved his rating compared to the last survey at the end of October to 26 percent (+6), but FDP President Christian Lindner also recorded a better result (25 percent).
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