German elections: Centre-left wins

According to preliminary results, Germany’s center-left Social Democrats have beaten Angela Merkel’s party in federal elections.

Olaf Scholz, the leader of SPD, says he has the mandate to form a government, but Armin Laschet, his conservative rival, plans to fight on.

These two parties have governed together for several years, but they seem to stop it.

Instead, liberals and the Greens are seeking a role in this new coalition.

These two parties received the most support from people under 30. They were inspired by proposed climate change actions and different approaches to tackling it.

Even though the Greens did not have high ambitions, they received almost 15% of the vote. It is the first time Germany faces a three-way coalition in history. Beyond these mainstream parties, election night seemed critical for the radical left party.

Overview

This election ended the domination of the two main parties – CDU (conservative Christian Democratic Union) and SPD (Mr. Scholz’s party). For the center-left party, this election seemed to be a notable improvement on the previous election, while for the conservatives, it was their worst performance.

Exit polls had their predictions regarding this event, but this election seemed very unpredictable even from the very beginning. Besides that, the result would never be the end of this narrative. For example, the chancellor is not planning to go anywhere until the coalition is formed. This process might last until Christmas.

The party that succeeded has a task to lead Europe’s major economy over the next four years. They have to prioritize climate change as it was at the top of electors’ agenda.

Supporters of the party of Mr. Scholz (SPD) greeted him with satisfaction. However, after he said in an interview, the voters had given him the task of forming a pragmatic and reasonable government for Germany.