Merz before the election: Does the coalition with the Left or AfD count?

Merz before the election: Does the coalition with the Left or AfD count?

An exciting race is looming in Germany's political landscape for the federal election, which will take place in ten days. Friedrich Merz, the CDU candidate for chancellor, has struck a chord with voters with his latest push to tighten asylum policy despite a setback in the Bundestag. Polls suggest that Merz's CDU could potentially win up to 30 percent of the vote, which would make him the clear election winner and potential successor to the chancellor, it reported krone.at. However, the situation for Merz looks less rosy with regard to coalition partners, as the economically liberal FDP appears to be in danger of not entering the Bundestag.

Coalition scenarios and challenges

The surveys also show that the right-wing populist “Alternative for Germany” (AfD) is entering the race as the second strongest party with over 20 percent. This presents Merz with the challenge of finding a suitable coalition despite his own assurances that he would never want to work with the AfD. The only options left are left-wing or left-wing parties, which puts him in an unfavorable position: he could end up as chancellor of a potentially left-leaning traffic light coalition, which would severely hinder his plans to change asylum and economic policy.
In addition, the immense increase in the use of the Wahl-O-Mat is commented on, which shows that voters are actively engaging with their decisions. According to political scientist Kai Arzheimer, the record numbers do not show desperation among voters, but rather an increased interest in making informed voting decisions. The users of the Wahl-O-Mat are mostly satisfied with their results, which correspond to their political wishes zdf.de reported.