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id="dw_w_article_premium" class="gpt-slot"></div></div><div class="c8dev6m container-fluid"><div id="main-content" class="s4wvt8f"></div><section class="row"><div class="detail-zone col"><article class="sk6xmai"><div class="content-area sa7l9jt s9mg977"><header class="sgeegmk"><div data-tracking-name="content-detail-kicker" class="kicker s1wafcin s1tby7rj icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><span>Politics</span><span><a href="/en/germany/s-1432" tabindex="0" class="l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Germany</a></span></div><h1 class="saqvxdf hr9hvkd hb7nbxk seipclg b1ho1h07">The 2025 German election in charts </h1><div class="author-details s9wq4ao"><span><a href="/en/gianna-carina-grün/person-36865192" class="author su3s3ra author-link l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Gianna-Carina Grün</a></span><span><span class="separator t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"> | </span><a href="/en/jon-shelton/person-39054732" class="author su3s3ra author-link l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Jon Shelton</a></span></div><span class="time-area s1i8qhb9 icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><span class="publication icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><time aria-hidden="true">02/18/2025</time><span class="sr-only s28j2rd">February 18, 2025</span></span></span><p class="teaser-text s1811lbz t1qen3t4 m1km9ap7 wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">With Germans electing a new government on February 23, here are the most important trends you need to know ahead of the vote.</p></header><section data-tracking-name="sharing-icons-inline" class="s75t7t0 hh5424a in-line closed"><div class="always-visible"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https://p.dw.com/p/4qaoG%3Fmaca%3Den-Facebook-sharing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="External link — share this page with Facebook" role="link" tabindex="0" class="facebook sc1azvo b1yws3tm sx4rgdt ih9bob8 seipclg wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07 b1ho1h07"><svg 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srcset="https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_800.webp 50w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_801.webp 129w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_802.webp 352w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_803.webp 575w" media="(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 575px)" height="100" width="100"/><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_600.webp 78w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_601.webp 201w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_602.webp 379w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_603.webp 545w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_604.webp 767w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_605.webp 1199w" media="(min-width: 576px) and (max-width: 991px)" height="56.25" width="100"/><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1000.webp 80w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1001.webp 576w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1002.webp 768w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1003.webp 992w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1004.webp 1200w" media="(min-width: 992px) " height="43.75" width="100"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_800.jpg 50w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_801.jpg 129w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_802.jpg 352w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_803.jpg 575w" media="(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 575px)" height="100" width="100"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_600.jpg 78w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_601.jpg 201w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_602.jpg 379w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_603.jpg 545w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_604.jpg 767w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_605.jpg 1199w" media="(min-width: 576px) and (max-width: 991px)" height="56.25" width="100"/><source type="image/jpeg" srcset="https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1000.jpg 80w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1001.jpg 576w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1002.jpg 768w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1003.jpg 992w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_1004.jpg 1200w" media="(min-width: 992px) " height="43.75" width="100"/><img fetchpriority="high" src srcset="https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_600.jpg 78w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_601.jpg 201w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_602.jpg 379w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_603.jpg 545w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_604.jpg 767w, https://static.dw.com/image/71565469_605.jpg 1199w" width="100" height="56.25" title="Graphic showing a digital representation of a voting ballot" alt="Graphic showing a digital representation of a voting ballot"/></picture><figcaption class="c1oedowi t1b9cajp r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><small class="copyright c19ed66t ihwmx5 iz19q57 icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Image: DW</small></figcaption></figure><span></span><div class="a1amioo0 cl16rh cl16rh rdrhdio hh5424a advertisement"><span class="label-top icns9en ixvat6c bmcvy6l wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Advertisement</span><div id="dw_m_article_top" class="gpt-slot"></div><div id="dw_t_article_top" class="gpt-slot"></div><div id="dw_d_article_top" class="gpt-slot"></div></div><div class="cc0m0op s1ebneao rich-text t1it8i9i r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><p><em>This article will be updated once new data and election results become available. </em></p> <h2>Who will win the German election?</h2> <p>Currently, the center-right <a class="internal-link" href="/en/christian-democratic-union-cdu/t-17351950">Christian Democratic Union</a> (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party, the  <a class="internal-link" href="/en/christian-social-union-csu/t-17439619">Christian Social Union</a> (CSU), are ahead in polls compiled by the Berlin-based election research institute infratest dimap. The Union parties enjoy a lead of more than 10 percentage points over the far-right populist <a class="internal-link" href="/en/alternative-for-germany-afd/t-17455253">Alternative for Germany</a> (AfD), which is <a class="internal-link" href="/en/germanys-merz-tells-dw-that-afd-wants-to-destroy-the-cdu/a-71498521">polling second</a>. </p> <p>The AfD has grown in popularity, and in September 2024 posted major gains in <a class="internal-link" href="/en/state-elections-in-saxony-thuringia-and-brandenburg/t-70002414">regional elections in the eastern states of Saxony, Thuringia and Brandenburg</a>.</p> <p>The governing <a class="internal-link" href="/en/social-democratic-party-spd/t-17437818">Social Democratic Party</a> (SPD) and <a class="internal-link" href="/en/germanys-green-party/t-17365878">Greens</a> follow in third and fourth place, while the neoliberal <a class="internal-link" href="/en/fdp-free-democratic-party/t-17365530">Free Democratic Party</a> (FDP), which was previously part of a three-way governing coalition, is running last.</p> <div data-vendor-cmp-id="c43449" data-lang-code="en" data-id="71640371" class="embed dw-widget"></div> <h2>Who will be Germany's next chancellor?</h2> <p>When voters cast their ballots on February 23, 2025, they won't directly elect the next German chancellor. Instead, they will elect politicians to the <a class="internal-link" href="/en/bundestag-germanys-lower-house-of-parliament/t-19153330">Bundestag</a>, the lower house of German parliament. Unless a party wins an outright majority, the party with the most representatives in the Bundestag attempts to build a governing coalition. Such coalitions usually hold a parliamentary majority, with contemporary Germany only twice having had minority governments — in 1966 and 1982. Ordinarily, the party with the most votes in a ruling coalition appoints its declared chancellor candidate to lead the government.</p> <div class="image-gallery embed" data-id="70812286"></div> <p>Despite not being directly elected, the popularity of each party's top candidate is regularly tracked alongside that of the <a class="internal-link" href="/en/spd-green-party-fdp-cdu-left-party-afd/a-38085900">party itself</a>. <a class="internal-link" href="/en/friedrich-merz/t-60575802">Friedrich Merz</a>, the CDU/CSU's chancellor candidate, is currently the frontrunner for the job.</p> <div data-vendor-cmp-id="c43449" data-lang-code="en" data-id="71640290" class="embed dw-widget"></div> <p>This is particularly interesting if you look at Merz's current numbers compared to those from 2021 — Merz was not the CDU/CSU chancellor candidate in that election, but pollsters still tracked his popularity. The 2021 election resulted in a three-way coalition between the center-left SPD, the environmentalist Greens, and the neoliberal FDP. The <a class="internal-link" href="/en/germanys-coalition-government-falls-apart-how-it-happened/a-70717066">recent collapse of that coalition</a> triggered the February 23 vote.</p> <p>Polling indicates that Merz is not in front because his own approval ratings have improved so significantly, but rather because Chancellor <a class="internal-link" href="/en/olaf-scholz/t-57304267">Olaf Scholz</a> (SPD chancellor candidate) and Vice Chancellor <a class="internal-link" href="/en/robert-habeck/t-60577340">Robert Habeck</a> (Greens chancellor candidate) have become so unpopular.</p> <div data-vendor-cmp-id="c43449" data-lang-code="en" data-id="71640369" class="embed dw-widget"></div> <h2>How is the German chancellor chosen?</h2> <p>Parties select their lead candidate prior to the election. After the vote, parties seek to form a governing coalition. When a potential coalition has been assembled, the German president (Germany's head of state) presents a candidate to be elected chancellor (head of government) by members of the Bundestag. </p> <p>The individual selected by the president is typically the top candidate of the senior coalition partner of a newly formed government. A candidate must secure an absolute majority to win the secret ballot vote. After a winner is determined he or she can begin naming Cabinet nominees.</p><span data-slot-id="Article_InContent-1" class="rich-text-ad"></span> <h2>How does Germany's election system work?</h2> <p>The <a class="internal-link" href="/en/a-quick-guide-to-german-elections/a-4541194">German electoral system</a> is designed to produce coalition governments. It seeks to unite the principles of majority rule and proportional representation. In <a class="internal-link" href="/en/who-can-and-cant-vote-in-germanys-2025-election/a-71399830">German elections, each voter casts two ballots</a> — the so-called "Erststimme" and "Zweitstimme" (first ballot, second ballot). </p> <p>The first ballot is cast for a "direct" candidate from a voter's constituency, the second is cast for a political party. </p> <p>The names of each party's candidates for the Bundestag appear on <em>Landeslisten</em>, or state lists, that must be filed with election authorities prior to the election. Candidates on state lists enter parliament according to their place on the list and the number of seats their party wins in a respective state — the more seats they win in a state, the more candidates from their state lists are appointed to fill them. </p> <p>These votes are key — the more second ballots a party receives, the more seats it is allotted in the parliament. Thus, the second vote determines the relative strength of the parties represented in the Bundestag.</p> <p>First and second ballots do not have to be cast for candidates from the same party. Voters are free to cast ballots for someone from one party with their first ballot and for a completely different party with their second.  </p> <p>Any party that wins more than 5% of the total vote is guaranteed a place in the Bundestag. </p><div data-vendor-cmp-id="c44391" data-lang-code="en" data-id="56812933" class="embed dw-widget"></div> </div><footer class="s1jc41xr"><div class="s69pihz row"><div class="col col-12 col-sm-6 author su8j2ma"><div class="author-name"><a href="/en/gianna-carina-grün/person-36865192" class="author su3s3ra author-link l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Gianna-Carina Grün</a><span class="s1czdz88 t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"> Data journalist and editor</span><a href="https://twitter.com/@giannagruen" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" title="External link — twitter — @giannagruen" class="s1gr9vqg l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" 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style="--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-xs:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-sm:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-md:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-lg:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-xl:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-wide_xl:1.7777777777777777;" class="srnoiv7 s1a75hd4 lazy-load-container"><img src aria-hidden="true" alt="Olaf Scholz seen from above as he is leaving the plenary chamber" class="lq-img"/><img src alt="Olaf Scholz seen from above as he is leaving the plenary chamber" title="Olaf Scholz seen from above as he is leaving the plenary chamber" class="hq-img"/></figure></a><div class="teaser-data-xs-sm"><h3 aria-hidden="false" class="title-xs-sm sf4wccd title"><a href="/en/timeline-of-confidence-votes-in-german-parliament/a-70497575" tabindex="0" class="lap31d1 l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Germany's history of confidence votes in parliament</a></h3></div></div><div class="teaser-data-wrap col-12"><div class="teaser-data"><h3 aria-hidden="false" class="title-above-md sf4wccd title"><a href="/en/timeline-of-confidence-votes-in-german-parliament/a-70497575" tabindex="0" class="lap31d1 l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Germany's history of confidence votes in parliament</a></h3><div class="d-none d-md-block s6kxfng teaser-description t1it8i9i r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><a href="/en/timeline-of-confidence-votes-in-german-parliament/a-70497575" tabindex="-1" class="l1j5qt2f b1ho1h07">German Chancellor Olaf Scholz lost a vote of confidence in parliament, triggering snap elections. Does such a move work as a path to restore political stability?</a></div></div><div class="s16l2fqg teaser-footer-wrapper s1teu0c4"><span class="kicker icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Politics</span><span class="date-time icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><time aria-hidden="true">12/16/2024</time><span class="sr-only s28j2rd">December 16, 2024</span></span></div></div></div></div><div class="teaser-wrap col-12 col-md-6 col-lg-4"><div class="row s1b19e59 teaser"><div class="teaser-image-wrap col-12"><a href="/en/german-chancellor-scholz-runs-out-of-patience-with-coalition/a-70717574" title="German Chancellor Scholz runs out of patience with coalition" tabindex="-1" class="teaser-image b1ho1h07"><figure style="--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-xs:1;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-sm:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-md:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-lg:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-xl:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-wide_xl:1.7777777777777777;" class="srnoiv7 s1a75hd4 lazy-load-container"><img src aria-hidden="true" alt="Olaf Scholz addressing the media on Wednesday evening (November 6, 2024)" class="lq-img"/><img src alt="Olaf Scholz addressing the media on Wednesday evening (November 6, 2024)" title="Olaf Scholz addressing the media on Wednesday evening (November 6, 2024)" class="hq-img"/></figure></a><div class="teaser-data-xs-sm"><h3 aria-hidden="false" class="title-xs-sm sf4wccd title"><a href="/en/german-chancellor-scholz-runs-out-of-patience-with-coalition/a-70717574" tabindex="0" class="lap31d1 l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">German Chancellor Scholz runs out of patience with coalition</a></h3></div></div><div class="teaser-data-wrap col-12"><div class="teaser-data"><h3 aria-hidden="false" class="title-above-md sf4wccd title"><a href="/en/german-chancellor-scholz-runs-out-of-patience-with-coalition/a-70717574" tabindex="0" class="lap31d1 l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">German Chancellor Scholz runs out of patience with coalition</a></h3><div class="d-none d-md-block s6kxfng teaser-description t1it8i9i r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><a href="/en/german-chancellor-scholz-runs-out-of-patience-with-coalition/a-70717574" tabindex="-1" class="l1j5qt2f b1ho1h07">German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is known for being a rather boring public speaker. But in explaining why he sacked finance minister and coalition partner Christian Lindner, the chancellor displayed unusual fervor. </a></div></div><div class="s16l2fqg teaser-footer-wrapper s1teu0c4"><span class="kicker icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Politics</span><span class="date-time icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><time aria-hidden="true">11/07/2024</time><span class="sr-only s28j2rd">November 7, 2024</span></span></div></div></div></div><div class="teaser-wrap col-12 col-md-6 col-lg-4"><div class="row s1b19e59 teaser"><div class="teaser-image-wrap col-12"><a href="/en/germany-fdp-hatched-plan-to-quit-ruling-coalition-reports/a-70801639" title="Germany: FDP hatched plan to quit ruling coalition — reports" tabindex="-1" class="teaser-image b1ho1h07"><figure style="--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-xs:1;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-sm:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-md:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-lg:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-xl:1.7777777777777777;--responsive-picture-aspect-ratio-wide_xl:1.7777777777777777;" class="srnoiv7 s1a75hd4 lazy-load-container"><img src aria-hidden="true" alt="Then-German Finance Minister Christian Lindner gestures with both hands while addressing lawmakers during a budget session" class="lq-img"/><img src alt="Then-German Finance Minister Christian Lindner gestures with both hands while addressing lawmakers during a budget session" title="Then-German Finance Minister Christian Lindner gestures with both hands while addressing lawmakers during a budget session" class="hq-img"/></figure></a><div class="teaser-data-xs-sm"><h3 aria-hidden="false" class="title-xs-sm sf4wccd title"><a href="/en/germany-fdp-hatched-plan-to-quit-ruling-coalition-reports/a-70801639" tabindex="0" class="lap31d1 l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Germany: FDP hatched plan to quit ruling coalition — reports</a></h3></div></div><div class="teaser-data-wrap col-12"><div class="teaser-data"><h3 aria-hidden="false" class="title-above-md sf4wccd title"><a href="/en/germany-fdp-hatched-plan-to-quit-ruling-coalition-reports/a-70801639" tabindex="0" class="lap31d1 l1amv4u6 btl76l3 e1eo633p wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Germany: FDP hatched plan to quit ruling coalition — reports</a></h3><div class="d-none d-md-block s6kxfng teaser-description t1it8i9i r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><a href="/en/germany-fdp-hatched-plan-to-quit-ruling-coalition-reports/a-70801639" tabindex="-1" class="l1j5qt2f b1ho1h07">One of three parties in Chancellor Olaf Scholz's governing coalition discussed plans to pull out two months before the government fell, German media have reported. Germany now faces a snap election in February 2025.</a></div></div><div class="s16l2fqg teaser-footer-wrapper s1teu0c4"><span class="kicker icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07">Politics</span><span class="date-time icns9en t14k9lqz r1wgtjne wgx1hx2 b1ho1h07"><time aria-hidden="true">11/16/2024</time><span class="sr-only s28j2rd">November 16, 2024</span></span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div id="post-more-on-topic" class="quick-item-target s4wvt8f"></div></section><section id="related-topics" data-tracking-name="section-related-topics" class="hh5424a s1vz34wi stfzu66"><a href="#post-related-topics" class="quick-item s1knotlb"><span class="hr9hvkd hb7nbxk seipclg b1ho1h07">Skip next section Related topics</span><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 20 20" class="s1ly0d8v"><g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd" stroke="#002D5A" stroke-width="2"><path d="M4 9L4 16 11 16" transform="rotate(45 7.5 12.5)"></path><path stroke-linecap="square" d="M3.5 12.5L17.5 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Germans electing a new government on February 23, here are the most important trends you need to know ahead of the vote.","priority":"NEUTRAL","contentDate":"2025-02-18T15:13:01.715Z","localizedContentDateSr":"February 18, 2025","localizedFirstPublicationDate":"02/18/2025","localizedFirstPublicationDateSr":"February 18, 2025","contentDateMode":"LAST_PUBLICATION_DATE","personAssociations":[{"targetId":36865192,"__typename":"ContentAssociation"},{"targetId":39054732,"__typename":"ContentAssociation"}],"legacyAuthor":"","thematicFocusCategory":{"name":"Politics","__typename":"Category"},"firstRegionArray":[{"alignedName":"Germany","correspondingContent":{"namedUrl":"/en/germany/s-1432","__typename":"Navigation"},"__typename":"GeographicRegion"}],"kicker":"","isOpinion":false,"firstPersonArray":[{"personType":"AUTHOR","namedUrl":"/en/gianna-carina-grün/person-36865192","fullName":"Gianna-Carina Grün","autoDelivery":1,"__typename":"Person"}],"genre":"NONE","opinionSeries":[],"text":"\u003cp>\u003cem>This article will be updated once new data and election results become available. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003ch2>Who will win the German election?\u003c/h2>\n\n\u003cp>Currently, the center-right \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/christian-democratic-union-cdu/t-17351950\">Christian Democratic Union\u003c/a> (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party, the  \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/christian-social-union-csu/t-17439619\">Christian Social Union\u003c/a> (CSU), are ahead in polls compiled by the Berlin-based election research institute infratest dimap. The Union parties enjoy a lead of more than 10 percentage points over the far-right populist \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/alternative-for-germany-afd/t-17455253\">Alternative for Germany\u003c/a> (AfD), which is \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/germanys-merz-tells-dw-that-afd-wants-to-destroy-the-cdu/a-71498521\">polling second\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\u003cp>The AfD has grown in popularity, and in September 2024 posted major gains in \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/state-elections-in-saxony-thuringia-and-brandenburg/t-70002414\">regional elections in the eastern states of Saxony, Thuringia and Brandenburg\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003cp>The governing \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/social-democratic-party-spd/t-17437818\">Social Democratic Party\u003c/a> (SPD) and \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/germanys-green-party/t-17365878\">Greens\u003c/a> follow in third and fourth place, while the neoliberal \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/fdp-free-democratic-party/t-17365530\">Free Democratic Party\u003c/a> (FDP), which was previously part of a three-way governing coalition, is running last.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003cdiv data-vendor-cmp-id=\"c43449\" data-lang-code=\"en\" data-id=\"71640371\" class=\"embed dw-widget\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003ch2>Who will be Germany's next chancellor?\u003c/h2>\n\n\u003cp>When voters cast their ballots on February 23, 2025, they won't directly elect the next German chancellor. Instead, they will elect politicians to the \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/bundestag-germanys-lower-house-of-parliament/t-19153330\">Bundestag\u003c/a>, the lower house of German parliament. Unless a party wins an outright majority, the party with the most representatives in the Bundestag attempts to build a governing coalition. Such coalitions usually hold a parliamentary majority, with contemporary Germany only twice having had minority governments — in 1966 and 1982. Ordinarily, the party with the most votes in a ruling coalition appoints its declared chancellor candidate to lead the government.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"image-gallery embed\" data-id=\"70812286\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003cp>Despite not being directly elected, the popularity of each party's top candidate is regularly tracked alongside that of the \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/spd-green-party-fdp-cdu-left-party-afd/a-38085900\">party itself\u003c/a>. \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/friedrich-merz/t-60575802\">Friedrich Merz\u003c/a>, the CDU/CSU's chancellor candidate, is currently the frontrunner for the job.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003cdiv data-vendor-cmp-id=\"c43449\" data-lang-code=\"en\" data-id=\"71640290\" class=\"embed dw-widget\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003cp>This is particularly interesting if you look at Merz's current numbers compared to those from 2021 — Merz was not the CDU/CSU chancellor candidate in that election, but pollsters still tracked his popularity. The 2021 election resulted in a three-way coalition between the center-left SPD, the environmentalist Greens, and the neoliberal FDP. The \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/germanys-coalition-government-falls-apart-how-it-happened/a-70717066\">recent collapse of that coalition\u003c/a> triggered the February 23 vote.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003cp>Polling indicates that Merz is not in front because his own approval ratings have improved so significantly, but rather because Chancellor \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/olaf-scholz/t-57304267\">Olaf Scholz\u003c/a> (SPD chancellor candidate) and Vice Chancellor \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/robert-habeck/t-60577340\">Robert Habeck\u003c/a> (Greens chancellor candidate) have become so unpopular.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003cdiv data-vendor-cmp-id=\"c43449\" data-lang-code=\"en\" data-id=\"71640369\" class=\"embed dw-widget\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003ch2>How is the German chancellor chosen?\u003c/h2>\n\n\u003cp>Parties select their lead candidate prior to the election. After the vote, parties seek to form a governing coalition. When a potential coalition has been assembled, the German president (Germany's head of state) presents a candidate to be elected chancellor (head of government) by members of the Bundestag. \u003c/p>\n\n\u003cp>The individual selected by the president is typically the top candidate of the senior coalition partner of a newly formed government. A candidate must secure an absolute majority to win the secret ballot vote. After a winner is determined he or she can begin naming Cabinet nominees.\u003c/p>\u003cspan data-slot-id=\"Article_InContent-1\" class=\"rich-text-ad\">\u003c/span>\n\n\u003ch2>How does Germany's election system work?\u003c/h2>\n\n\u003cp>The \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/a-quick-guide-to-german-elections/a-4541194\">German electoral system\u003c/a> is designed to produce coalition governments. It seeks to unite the principles of majority rule and proportional representation. In \u003ca class=\"internal-link\" href=\"/en/who-can-and-cant-vote-in-germanys-2025-election/a-71399830\">German elections, each voter casts two ballots\u003c/a> — the so-called \"Erststimme\" and \"Zweitstimme\" (first ballot, second ballot). \u003c/p>\n\n\u003cp>The first ballot is cast for a \"direct\" candidate from a voter's constituency, the second is cast for a political party. \u003c/p>\n\n\u003cp>The names of each party's candidates for the Bundestag appear on \u003cem>Landeslisten\u003c/em>, or state lists, that must be filed with election authorities prior to the election. Candidates on state lists enter parliament according to their place on the list and the number of seats their party wins in a respective state — the more seats they win in a state, the more candidates from their state lists are appointed to fill them. \u003c/p>\n\n\u003cp>These votes are key — the more second ballots a party receives, the more seats it is allotted in the parliament. 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