Losing Monday’s no-confidence vote was the result Scholz wanted.
Thanks to the defeat, the election may now take place in February, instead of September as originally planned.
207 deputies voted for Scholz, mostly from his own party, 394 voted against him, and 116 abstained.
Starting with Scholz’s argumentative three-party governing coalition collapsed in Novemberhe relied on the support of opposition conservatives to pass any new laws, effectively turning his administration into a lame-duck government.
Given the impasse in Germany’s economy and the global crises facing the West as it lurches toward the planned September 2025 election date, the electorate risked being seen as irresponsible.
Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SDP) is lagging far behind in opinion polls, while the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), led by Friedrich Merz, looks set to return to government.
Opening debate ahead of Monday’s vote, Scholz said the snap election was an opportunity to set a new course for the country and called for “enormous” investment, especially in defence, while Mertz said higher debt would burden younger generations and promised tax cuts.
