Editing Politics of Germany (section)

==History==

===Before 1998===
Beginning with the election of [[Konrad Adenauer]] in 1949, the [[West Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]] had [[CDU/CSU|Christian Democratic]] chancellors for 20 years until a [[German governing coalition|coalition]] between the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany|Social Democrats]] and the [[Free Democratic Party (Germany)|Liberals]] took over. From 1982, Christian Democratic leader [[Helmut Kohl]] was chancellor in a coalition with the Liberals for 16 years. In this period fell the reunification of Germany, in 1990: the [[German Democratic Republic]] joined the Federal Republic. In the former GDR's territory, five ''Länder'' (states) were established or reestablished. The two parts of Berlin united as one "Land" (state).

The political system of the Federal Republic remained more or less unchanged. Specific provisions for the former GDR territory were enabled via the ''unification treaty'' between the Federal Republic and the GDR prior to the [[German Unity Day|unification day]] of 3 October 1990. However, Germany saw in the following two distinct party systems: the Green party and the Liberals remained mostly West German parties, while in the East the former socialist state party, now called The Left Party, flourished along with the Christian Democrats and Social Democrats.

===1998–2005===
{{Main|1998 German federal election|2002 German federal election}}
[[File:Schroeder2002.jpg|thumb|[[Gerhard Schröder]] in the 2002 elections]]
[[File:Joschka Fischer 2005.jpg|thumb|[[Joschka Fischer]] in the 2005 elections]]

After 16 years of the Christian–Liberal coalition, led by [[Helmut Kohl]], the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany]] (SPD) together with the Greens won the Bundestag elections of 1998. SPD vice chairman [[Gerhard Schröder]] positioned himself as a centrist candidate, in contradiction to the leftist SPD chairman [[Oskar Lafontaine]]. The Kohl government was hurt at the polls by slower economic growth in the East in the previous two years, and constantly high unemployment. The final margin of victory was sufficiently high to permit a "red-green" coalition of the SPD with [[Alliance 90/The Greens]] ({{lang|de|Bündnis '90/Die Grünen}}), bringing the Greens into a national government for the first time.

Initial problems of the new government, marked by policy disputes between the moderate and traditional left wings of the SPD, resulted in some voter disaffection. Lafontaine left the government (and later his party) in early 1999. The CDU won in some important state elections but was hit in 2000 by a party donation scandal from the Kohl years. As a result of this [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|Christian Democratic Union]] (CDU) crisis, [[Angela Merkel]] became chair.

The [[2002 German federal election|next election for the {{lang|de|Bundestag|nocat=y}}]] was on 22 September 2002. Gerhard Schröder led the coalition of SPD and Greens to an eleven-seat victory over the Christian Democrat challengers headed by [[Edmund Stoiber]] (CSU). Three factors are generally cited that enabled Schröder to win the elections despite poor approval ratings a few months before and a weaker economy: good handling of the [[2002 European floods|100-year flood]], firm opposition to the US [[2003 invasion of Iraq]], and Stoiber's unpopularity in the east, which cost the CDU crucial seats there.

In its second term, the red–green coalition lost several very important state elections, for example in [[Lower Saxony]] where Schröder was the prime minister from 1990 to 1998. On 20 April 2003, chancellor Schröder announced massive labor market reforms, called [[Agenda 2010]], that cut unemployment benefits. Although these reforms sparked massive protests, they are now credited with being in part responsible for the relatively strong economic performance of Germany during the [[European debt crisis|euro-crisis]] and the decrease in unemployment in Germany in the years 2006–2007.<ref>{{citation|url=http://www.bpb.de/nachschlagen/zahlen-und-fakten/soziale-situation-in-deutschland/61718/arbeitslose-und-arbeitslosenquote|title=Arbeitslose und Arbeitslosenquote|date=28 March 2024 }}</ref>

===2005–2009===
{{Main|2005 German federal election}}
[[File:Angela Merkel (2008).jpg|thumb|Former chancellor: [[Angela Merkel]] of the [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|Christian Democrats]]]]

On 22 May 2005 the SPD received a devastating defeat in its former heartland, [[North Rhine-Westphalia]]. Half an hour after the election results, the SPD chairman [[Franz Müntefering]] announced that the chancellor would clear the way for new federal elections.

This took the republic by surprise, especially because the SPD was below 20% in polls at the time. The CDU quickly announced [[Angela Merkel]] as Christian Democrat candidate for chancellor, aspiring to be the first female chancellor in German history.

New for the 2005 election was the alliance between the newly formed [[Electoral Alternative for Labor and Social Justice]] (WASG) and the PDS, planning to fuse into a common party (see [[The Left (Germany)|Left Party.PDS]]). With the former SPD chairman, Oskar Lafontaine for the WASG and [[Gregor Gysi]] for the PDS as prominent figures, this alliance soon found interest in the media and in the population. Polls in July saw them as high as 12%.

Whereas in May and June 2005 victory of the Christian Democrats seemed highly likely, with some polls giving them an absolute majority, this picture changed shortly before the election on 18 September 2005.
[[File:Sánchez se reunió con el nuevo canciller alemán Olaf Scholz en La Moncloa 20220117 (8) (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Olaf Scholz]], chancellor from 2021 to 2025]]
[[File:Frank-Walter Steinmeier - 2018.jpg|thumb|[[Frank-Walter Steinmeier]] was the [[Social Democratic Party of Germany|Social Democrat]] candidate for chancellor in 2009 and president of Germany since 2017.]]

The election results of 18 September were surprising because they differed widely from the polls of the previous weeks. The Christian Democrats even lost votes compared to 2002, narrowly reaching the first place with only 35.2%, and failed to get a majority for a "black–yellow" government of [[CDU/CSU]] and liberal FDP. But the red–green coalition also failed to get a majority, with the SPD losing votes, but polling 34.2% and the greens staying at 8.1%. [[The Left (Germany)|The Left]] reached 8.7% and entered the ''[[Bundestag]]'', whereas the far-right [[National Democratic Party of Germany|NPD]] only got 1.6%.<ref>[http://www.bundeswahlleiter.de/de/bundestagswahlen/BTW_BUND_05/ergebnisse/bundesergebnisse/b_tabelle_99.html Official election results] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090423055851/http://www.bundeswahlleiter.de/de/bundestagswahlen/BTW_BUND_05/ergebnisse/bundesergebnisse/b_tabelle_99.html |date=23 April 2009 }}</ref>

The most likely outcome of coalition talks was a so-called grand coalition between the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) and the Social Democrats (SPD). Three party coalitions and coalitions involving The Left had been ruled out by all interested parties (including The Left itself). On 22 November 2005, Angela Merkel was sworn in by President [[Horst Köhler]] for the office of Bundeskanzlerin.

The existence of the grand coalition on federal level helped smaller parties' electoral prospects in state elections. Since in 2008, the CSU lost its absolute majority in Bavaria and formed a coalition with the FDP, the grand coalition had no majority in the ''Bundesrat'' and depended on FDP votes on important issues. In November 2008, the SPD re-elected its already retired chair [[Franz Müntefering]] and made [[Frank-Walter Steinmeier]] its leading candidate for the federal election in September 2009.

As a result of [[2009 German federal election|that federal election]], the grand coalition brought losses for both parties and came to an end. The SPD suffered the heaviest losses in its history and was unable to form a coalition government. The CDU/CSU had only little losses but also reached a new historic low with its worst result since 1949. The three smaller parties thus had more seats in the German ''Bundestag'' than ever before, with the liberal party FDP winning 14.6% of votes.

=== 2009–2013 ===
{{Main|2009 German federal election}}
[[File:Sigmar Gabriel-2009 ArM.jpg|thumb|[[Sigmar Gabriel]]: [[Social Democratic Party of Germany|SPD]] chairman from 2009 to 2017, 2013–2017 [[Vice-Chancellor of Germany|Deputy to the Chancellor]]]]

The CDU/CSU and FDP together held 332 seats (of 622 total seats) and had been in coalition since 27 October 2009. Angela Merkel was re-elected as chancellor, and [[Guido Westerwelle]] served as the [[Foreign Office (Germany)|foreign minister]] and vice chancellor of Germany. After being elected into the federal government, the FDP suffered heavy losses in the following state elections. The FDP had promised to lower taxes in the electoral campaign, but after being part of the coalition they had to concede that this was not possible due to the [[Great Recession|economic crisis]] of 2008. Because of the losses, Guido Westerwelle had to resign as chair of the FDP in favor of [[Philipp Rösler]], [[Federal Ministry of Health (Germany)|federal minister of health]], who was consequently appointed as [[Vice Chancellor of Germany|vice chancellor]]. Shortly after, Philipp Rösler changed office and became [[Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (Germany)|federal minister of economics and technology]].

After their electoral fall, the Social Democrats were led by [[Sigmar Gabriel]], a former federal minister and prime minister of Lower Saxony, and by [[Frank-Walter Steinmeier]] as the head of the parliamentary group. He resigned on 16 January 2017 and proposed his longtime friend and president of [[European Parliament]] [[Martin Schulz]] as his successor and chancellor candidate.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2017/01/26/germ-j26.html |title=Sigmar Gabriel resigns as Social Democratic Party leader and chancellor candidate - World Socialist Web Site |date=26 January 2017 |publisher=Wsws.org |access-date=2019-02-05}}</ref>
Germany has seen increased political activity by citizens outside the established political parties with respect to local and [[environmental activism|environmental]] issues such as the location of [[Stuttgart 21]], a railway hub, and construction of [[Berlin Brandenburg Airport]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Dempsey|first=Judy|title=German Politics Faces Grass-Roots Threat|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/02/world/europe/02germany.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/02/world/europe/02germany.html |archive-date=2022-01-02 |url-access=limited |url-status=live|access-date=16 May 2011|newspaper=The New York Times|date=1 May 2011}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

=== 2013–2017 ===
{{main article|2013 German federal election}}

The 18th federal elections in Germany resulted in the re-election of [[Angela Merkel]] and her Christian democratic parliamentary group of the parties [[Christian Democratic Union of Germany|CDU]] and CSU, receiving 41.5% of all votes. Following Merkel's first two historically low results, her third campaign marked the CDU/CSU's best result since 1994 and only for the second time in German history the possibility of gaining an absolute majority. Their former coalition partner, the FDP, narrowly failed to reach the 5% threshold and did not gain seats in the [[Bundestag]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/europe-travel/germanys-left-turn-fm00xmlrv2z |title=Germany's Left Turn |newspaper=[[The Times]] |date=2013-10-22 |access-date=2019-02-05}}</ref>

Not having reached an absolute majority, the CDU/CSU formed a [[Grand coalition (Germany)|grand coalition]] with the social-democratic [[SPD]] after the longest coalition talks in history, making the head of the party [[Sigmar Gabriel]] [[Vice-Chancellor of Germany|vice-chancellor]] and federal [[Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy|minister for economic affairs and energy]]. Together they held 504 of a total 631 seats (CDU/CSU 311 and SPD 193). The only two opposition parties were The Left (64 seats) and Alliance '90/The Greens (63 seats), which was acknowledged as creating a critical situation in which the opposition parties did not even have enough seats to use the special controlling powers of the opposition.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bundestag.de/bundestag/plenum/sitzverteilung18.html |title=Deutscher Bundestag: Sitzverteilung des 18. Deutschen Bundestages |access-date=2014-01-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140121013840/http://www.bundestag.de/bundestag/plenum/sitzverteilung18.html |archive-date=21 January 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

=== 2017–2021 ===
{{main article|2017 German federal election}}

The 19th federal elections in Germany took place on 24 September 2017. The two big parties, the conservative parliamentary group [[CDU/CSU]] and the social democrat [[Social Democratic Party of Germany|SPD]] were in a similar situation as in 2009, after the last grand coalition had ended, and both had suffered severe losses; reaching their second worst and worst result respectively in 2017.<ref>{{cite news |title=German election: Merkel wins fourth term, AfD nationalists rise |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-41376577 |work=BBC News |date=25 September 2017}}</ref>

Many votes in the 2017 elections went to smaller parties, leading the right-wing populist party [[Alternative for Germany|AfD]] (Alternative for Germany) into the [[Bundestag]] which marked a big shift in German politics since it was the first far-right party to win seats in parliament since the 1950s.

With Merkel's candidacy for a fourth term, the CDU/CSU only reached 33.0% of the votes, but won the highest number of seats, leaving no realistic coalition option without the CDU/CSU. As all parties in the Bundestag strictly ruled out a coalition with the AfD, the only options for a majority coalition were a so-called "Jamaican" coalition (CDU/CSU, [[Free Democratic Party (Germany)|FDP]], [[Alliance 90/The Greens|Greens]]; named after the party colors resembling those of the Jamaican flag) and a grand coalition with the SPD, which was at first opposed by the Social Democrats and their leader [[Martin Schulz]].<ref>{{cite news |title=SPD's Martin Schulz under pressure to reconsider grand coalition with Angela Merkel |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/spd-martin-schulz-under-pressure-to-reconsider-grand-coalition-with-angela-merkel/ |work=POLITICO |date=22 November 2017}}</ref>

Coalition talks between the three parties of the "Jamaican" coalition were held but the final proposal was rejected by the liberals of the FDP, leaving the government in limbo.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/live/2017/nov/20/markets-rattled-euro-dax-bunds-german-coalition-talks-collapse-business-live|title=Markets rattled as German coalition talks collapse – business live|last=Wearden|first=Graeme|date=2017-11-20|work=The Guardian|access-date=2017-11-20}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2017/sep/24/german-elections-2017-angela-merkel-cdu-spd-afd-live-updates|title=German elections 2017: Angela Merkel wins fourth term but AfD makes gains – as it happened|last=Henley|first=Jon|date=2017-09-24|work=The Guardian|access-date=2017-09-25}}</ref> Following the unprecedented situation, for the first time in German history different minority coalitions or even direct snap coalitions were also heavily discussed. At this point, [[President of Germany|Federal President]] [[Frank-Walter Steinmeier|Steinmeier]] invited leaders of all parties for talks about a government, being the first president in the history of the Federal Republic to do so.

Official coalition talks between CDU/CSU and SPD started in January 2018 and led to a renewal of the grand coalition on 12 March 2018 as well as the subsequent re-election of Angela Merkel as chancellor.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.zeit.de/politik/deutschland/2018-03/grosse-koalition-union-und-spd-unterschreiben-koalitionsvertrag|title=Union und SPD unterschreiben Koalitionsvertrag|date=12 March 2018|newspaper=Die Zeit|access-date=16 April 2018}}</ref>

=== 2021–2025<!--update "current"--> ===
{{main article|2021 German federal election}}{{See also|2025 German federal election}}
Scheduled elections for the new Bundestag were held on [[2021 German federal election|26 September 2021]] during the [[COVID-19 pandemic]]. Angela Merkel did not stand for a fifth term but handed her post over after the second longest term for a chancellor in German history. [[Olaf Scholz]] was sworn in as the new chancellor on 8 December 2021. His Social Democrats had won the plurality of votes and formed a liberal-left coalition government with The Greens and the FDP.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-12-08|title=Olaf Scholz elected to succeed Angela Merkel as German chancellor|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/08/olaf-scholz-elected-succeed-angela-merkel-german-chancellor|access-date=2022-01-11|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref>

For the first time since 1949 the [[South Schleswig Voters' Association]] was able to gain a seat in the Bundestag. As a party which represents Frisian and Danish minorities in Germany it is not bound by the 5% threshold.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2023-09-28 |title=Erst angefeindet, jetzt im Bundestag: 75 Jahre SSW im Landtag|url=https://www.ndr.de/nachrichten/schleswig-holstein/Erst-angefeindet-jetzt-im-Bundestag-75-Jahre-SSW-im-Landtag,sswschleswigholstein100.html|access-date=2024-10-07|website=NDR.de|language=de}}</ref>
The Left party missed that threshold as well and was only able to enter the Bundestag by winning three direct mandates. This was only the fourth time in history that this clause on the minimum number of constituency seats required for party representation in Parliament was applied.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2024-10-07 |title=Clause on the minimum number of constituency seats required for party representation in Parliament|url=https://bundeswahlleiterin.de/en/service/glossar/g/grundmandatsklausel.html|access-date=2024-10-07|website=Bundeswahlleiterin.de|language=en}}</ref>

In February 2022, [[Frank-Walter Steinmeier]] was elected for a second five-year term as Germany's president. Although a largely ceremonial post, he has been seen as a symbol of consensus and continuity.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2022-02-13|title=Steinmeier reelected as German president |url=https://www.dw.com/en/frank-walter-steinmeier-elected-to-second-term-as-german-president/a-60760871|access-date=2024-11-10 |website=Deutsche Welle|language=en}}</ref>

In a highly publicized break with her former party, The Left, [[Sahra Wagenknecht]] formed her own left-wing but culturally and socially conservative populist party, the [[Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance]] in 2024. Along with 9 other former members of The Left who held on to their seats in the Bundestag after leaving the party, they now hold 1.36% of mandates and cost The Left party its status as a parliamentary group.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2024-06-10 |title=Germany's new populists BSW challenge the far-right AfD|url=https://www.dw.com/en/eu-elections-2024-bsw-wagenknecht-results/a-66470345|access-date=2024-10-07|website=Deutsche Welle|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2024-10-07 |title=Sitzverteilung des 20. Deutschen Bundestages|url=https://www.bundestag.de/parlament/plenum/sitzverteilung_20wp|access-date=2024-10-07|website=Bundestag.de|language=de}}</ref>

On 6 November 2024, chancellor Olaf Scholz dismissed Christian Lindner from his post as finance minister, starting the [[2024 German government crisis]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=2024-11-08 |title=Fiscal policy was a squabble too far for German coalition’s odd throuple |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/08/|access-date=2024-11-10|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref> After the FDP left the coalition, Scholz announced a [[2024 German government crisis#Vote of confidence|vote of confidence]] which he lost.<ref>{{Cite web |title=German election: Scholz loses confidence vote – DW – 12/17/2024 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/german-election-scholz-loses-confidence-vote/live-71063891 |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=dw.com |language=en}}</ref> President Steinmeier would dissolve the Bundestag on 27 December 2024, paving the way for [[2025 German federal election|new federal elections]] in Germany.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steinmeier löst Bundestag auf: Weg frei für Neuwahlen – DW – 27.12.2024 |url=https://www.dw.com/de/steinmeier-aufloesung-bundestag-neuwahlen-wegen-koalitions-krise-in-deutschland/a-70453303 |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=dw.com |language=de}}</ref>