Berlin. The Chancellor could no longer withstand the pressure. Asking the vote of confidence in the Bundestag before Christmas, which is necessary for a new election, is “not a problem at all,” said Olaf Scholz on Sunday evening in the ARD program “Caren Miosga”. “I also want it to happen quickly,” he assured, “I am not attached to my office.” When the traffic light coalition collapsed last Wednesday, the Social Democrat had named January 15th as the date for the vote of confidence. Then the election would probably have been held at the end of March.
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When exactly voters will actually be able to decide on the composition of a new Bundestag remains nebulous for the time being – especially since the question has a political and a practical side.
Chancellor Scholz is open to an earlier appointment if there is a question of trust
The coalition has broken down – when will the Chancellor ask the vote of confidence?
The Union is picking up the pace. She wants to ask citizens, at least officially, to go to the polls as soon as possible. Scholz has now approached them and explained that the date would have to be clarified by SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich and Friedrich Merz as Union faction leader. He will act accordingly. The CDU and CSU immediately rejected this initiative. Your parliamentary group leader Thorsten Frei spoke of a “fog candle”. Scholz should quickly ask the question of trust, the CDU politician told the “Bild” newspaper. “No further agreements are necessary.” In any case, it’s Scholz’s turn. “There is nothing to talk about,” it is said in the Union, where Merz internally mentioned February 16th or 23rd as possible election dates in the afternoon. The confusion is completed because the Greens want to be involved in discussions – always assuming that these actually take place.
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Formal course clearly outlined
Only the formal course of events is prescribed by the constitution: If the Chancellor loses the vote of confidence, which everyone assumes, he can suggest to Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier that the Bundestag be dissolved. Steinmeier then has 21 days to decide whether to do so or not. After that, a maximum of 60 days remain for new elections. The sooner the Chancellor asks Parliament for a vote on him, the faster it can happen.
Chancellor on “Caren Miosga”: Olaf Scholz relies on the coolness factor
Openness about new election dates, declared confidence with regard to the future US President Donald Trump, jokes about Elon Musk and quiet mockery of Friedrich Merz – a few days after the failure of his traffic light coalition, Chancellor Olaf Scholz presents himself tidy and cheerful at “Caren Miosga”. He only gets angry when he hears a name.
This is where the practical questions come into play. Last week, Federal Returning Officer Ruth Brand warned against an early election date and pointed out the great organizational effort involved. Election committees would have to be appointed at district and state level, election workers would have to be recruited and trained, and voting rooms would have to be found and equipped. Election notifications are sent to over 60 million voters. In addition, there is the sending of postal voting documents and the establishment of postal voting districts – there were 25,000 in 2021. Brand emphasized that it was also necessary to provide and test the necessary IT infrastructure in order to prevent the risk of cyber attacks.
The federal chairman of the Pirates, Borys Sobieski, told the editorial network Germany (RND): “An election is certainly technically feasible in a short space of time. Whether this is fair and sensible is a completely different matter. A snap election like this is certainly not good for our democracy.” He sees major challenges, especially for small parties, and is therefore not ruling out legal action by his party. In fact, certain – albeit shortenable – deadlines apply when drawing up candidates and state lists.
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The printing industry, however, signaled that providing sufficient ballot papers for a quick new Bundestag election was not an insurmountable obstacle. “If the order is placed promptly, the printing companies can produce the ballot papers for an early federal election,” said the managing director of the Federal Association of Printing and Media, Kirsten Hommelhoff. The industry is also “extremely powerful in the short term”.
Criticism of the Federal Returning Officer
The Union immediately questions the independence of the Federal Returning Officer. The chairwoman of the CDU and CSU SME Association (MIT), Gitta Connemann, told the RND: “Why did she write directly to the Chancellor and not to the actually responsible Federal Minister of the Interior?” And she added: “In my opinion, the Federal Returning Officer The past few days have proven that she is not up to the task. This office must be above all suspicion.” Ruth Brand’s reputation is “already damaged, so that for me personally it is no longer sustainable after the election.”
FDP General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai also rejected Brand’s concerns. For example, bringing forward party events to present candidates is possible, he said. And it is not the federal and state election officials who decide on election dates anyway. It is a political decision.
The overall consequences of the political and practical pros and cons are currently uncertain. The only thing that is certain is that the new Bundestag will be elected at the end of March at the latest, but probably a few weeks earlier.
