The February 2025 federal elections in Germany led to the victory of conservative and rightest parties to the German Bundestag. The center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian associate Christian Socialist Union (CSU) were the top winners with 28.5 percent of the votes. The hard right Alternative for Germany (AFD) came second with 20.8 percent of the votes The erstwhile ruling party, the Social Democratic Party (SPD) came third with 16.4 percent votes. It was the SPD’s worst result in the federal elections since 1887.
Friedrich Merz, the head of the CDU has successfully negotiated the formation of a CDU-CSU coalition government with the SPD. It shall be a centrist coalition known as a grand coalition in Germany. Negotiations for coalition government normally take quite a long time in Germany. This coalition, however, was formed in 45 days. Merz was more comfortable with a two party coalition expecting it to be more stable and manageable. His selection of the SPD as a partner as also a pragmatic choice. The SPD’s pro-European center-left platform is a good bonding option for the CDU. Germany has a history of having sound coalition governments. Between 2005 and 2021 Angela Markel remained the chancellor of Germany. As a head of the CDU party she formed three grand coalition governments with the SPD during this time.
On the 9th of April 2025 Germany’s new government published its coalition agreement called the Responsibility for Germany. Under this coalition government agreement, the CDU has taken the Chancellorship and six ministries, the CSU has taken three ministries and the SPD has taken seven ministries. This coalition government has been formed against the backdrop of some very complex challenges facing Germany and the EU in the domestic affairs as well as the international arena.
The difficult antecedents to the formation of the current coalition government in Germany are the US pivot to Russia and President Trump’s tariffs on Europe. President Trump’s phone call with the Russian president Putin and the US Vice President JD Vance critical estimate of the European democracy has been noted in Germany. On February 14th, 2025, at the occasion of the Munich Security Conference, the American vice president observed,
“For years we have been told everything we fund and support is in the name of our shared democratic values. Everything from our Ukraine policy to digital censorship is billed as a defense of democracy, but when we see European courts cancelling elections and senior officials threatening to cancel others we ought to ask ourselves if we are holding ourselves to an appropriately high standards.”
Earlier the US suspended and then resumed all military aid to Ukraine which it resumed later. Germany and the EU have mostly viewed the American volte-face on the Russia-Ukraine War as a betrayal. They realize that the long standing security partnership with the US is coming to an end. In the newer world they shall mostly have to take charge of their security.
Domestically, the coalition plans to spend more. The defense spending planned by the government shall give a boost to manufacturing especially the arms industries. The government hopes to encourage investments and enhance competitiveness. It also plans to increase skilled labor migration to Germany.
The German grand coalition wants to enhance relations with the US despite the early setbacks. It wants to avoid trade war with the US. It has claimed that it shall cooperate with China where it serves German and the EU interests. It has also pledged to confront China where it is needed.
At home the proposed coalition government has faced harsh estimates from its detractors. The left-wing Die Linke Party has called it the “Coalition of ignorance and hopelessness.” The far-right AFD blamed the CDU for lying to the voters. It claimed that it was a coalition impacted by the election losers SDP.
On the whole the Grand coalition government that shall take power in May 2025 has been welcomed internationally. The Economists called it “blandly reassuring.” Europe has welcomed the coalition hoping that improvements in the German economy would have a positive impact on the European economies at large. The EU also appreciates its stability and pro-EU position. Let us hope that it lives up to most of its vows and promises.
