Germany’s Christian Democrats ready for snap election

WIESBADEN, Germany - Germany’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) is ready for a snap election and has its eyes on the position of chancellor, a party official said on Thursday. 

“We are ready for the snap election. In the party's general congress, we have adopted a new, clear program, and we know what we want. We will convey this program to our voters in a very easy way,” Gregor Golland, deputy head of the CDU’s parliamentary group in North Rhine-Westphalia, told Rudaw.

Germany’s ruling coalition, which consists of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats, the Greens, and Free Democrats, collapsed recently after Scholz fired Finance Minister Christian Lindner, who heads the Free Democrats, for allegedly putting the interests of his party base over those of Germany.

The country will hold a snap poll on February 23.

Friedrich Merz, leader of the Christian Democrats who are ahead in opinion polls, has called for the election to be held much earlier, saying they do not want a minority government to rule the country until February. 

“We aim for Friedrich Merz to become the head of the federal government and take on the role of the new chancellor of Germany. He can lead Germany back to its rightful place in the world, focusing on economic authority, foreign policy, security, and defense. Germany is ready for the snap election,” Golland said. 

Jochen Ott, deputy chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) parliamentary bloc, told Rudaw that the economy will be a major concern for voters.

“The big question is that many people have less money in their pockets. Most of them are facing very dire conditions. Therefore the social issue is a decisive one during this electoral campaign,” he said. 

“Eventually people will decide whether they want to choose welfare, in other words the Socials, or the CDU, which will work to loot the pockets of ordinary people. We will present this to the voters,” he added.