Merkel’s successor: how Olaf Scholz won the election in Germany

Angela Merkel’s decision to leave Germany after 16 years as chancellor has left millions of votes cast. In Sunday’s election, Olaf Scholz won by two hands – and won.

Since the start of the campaign Scholz, who wants to become chancellor of the Social Democrats, has favored many German people who supported Merkel in the last four elections but did not have much faith in the Christian Democratic Union.

“That’s Merkel Sozi, “Said Scholz’s supporters – the people who” voted for the CDU / CSU while Merkel was in charge but [now] consider voting for SPD or Green ”.

“It’s people who appreciate Merkel’s humility, her humor, her calmness – and I see the same qualities in Olaf,” he added.

The method was successful, with clear results. A few months ago, the SPD was suffering about 15% of the vote. On the Sabbath won the election with 25.7% of the vote, and the CDU / CSU fell to the worst result in its history.

All the while, Mr. Scholz insisted that the election would be different from the previous ones. For the first time in post-war German history, the former chancellor did not stand for election. His belief was that Merkel leaves the court meaning that voters choose the right person to fill his or her shoes, regardless of party affiliation.

Speaking to Financial Times in June, Scholz said what could be considered in this year’s election could not determine who has the best interests of the “we want to run the country”. Many voters, he says, will eventually decide to be him.

Scholz was found to be telling the truth. She was able to present herself as Merkel’s successor, even though she came from another party. Merkel’s known skills – pragmatism, self-control, reliability and a wealth of knowledge in office – seem to be magical from the chancellor to his finance minister.

Andrea Römmele, professor of political science at Hertie School in Berlin, said: “Scholz was able to get involved.

Merkel’s idea of ​​kneeling also removed the curse that has plagued the SPD for years. As a young ally in its “big partnership” over the past eight years, it played a key role in making the decision: it was because of the SPD that Germany paid the minimum wage in 2015, for example. But voters always give Merkel, not the Social Democrats, the advantage.

That has changed this year. “Because Merkel did not start again, the SPD was able to make a record of all the good things she did in government – which the chancellor would have said if she had stood up,” Römmele said.

Another important observation of Scholz was that a change in German political systems would ultimately benefit the SPD more than its counterpart. When asked in the summer how he thought Traditional Democrats could recover from the vote, he expressed confidence that seemed wrong at the time but looking back was justified.

“The time when one party gets 40% or more of the vote is over,” he told FT. “We have a lot of parties where the big parties have fewer seats than they used to – and that means a slight change in voting patterns could create new parties.”

It was an idea beforehand. Scholz is now looking under the direction of SPD, a three-party agreement, the first in Germany since the 1950’s.

Scholz’s route to the surface was not straight. Unloved by his party, the former federal minister and mayor of Hamburg were humiliated by defeat in 2019 SPD leadership competition, the loss of opportunities for lesser-known freedom fighters.

Many Social Democrats are suspicious of him, recognizing him as having a career and development crisis that was forced on him by Gerhard Schröder, the last chancellor of the Social Democrat, of whom Scholz served as secretary general of the SPD.

Saskia Esken, one of the two who defeated him in 2019, also doubted in a TV interview the same year whether Scholz was a “true, unwavering Social Democrat”.

But despite the party’s infidelity, it did chose Scholz as a chancellor’s candidate in August last year. At the time, the SPD was in the process of voting, and a few in the party expected to be able to turn its assets around. Opponents say those who left the party consider him a good man if the SPD loses the election.

Some in Berlin also reported that the decision to establish Scholz came too early – a year before the election. However, it turned out to be a wise move.

“It means we were able to create a campaign that was exactly the same as Scholz,” said Jens Zimmermann, a member of the SPD. “We can build a very good, efficient system.”

Scholz did not set foot, unlike his rivals. Armin Laschet, Elected to the CDU / CSU, saw an increase in his recent laughter as he toured areas affected by the floods. Annalena Baerbock, Elected in Green, has to deal with theft cases and improve his CV.

In contrast, Scholz has met with politicians who are more inclined to look to him for guidance. He is known as one of the most influential financiers in Germany through the epidemic.

He also ran an uninterrupted campaign based on simple promises: low pay, permanent pensions, affordable housing and carbon offsets.

And all the time, the SPD – a disruptive party that has been plagued by violence – stays behind them. Zimmermann said: “We have been at odds for many years.”

Running a campaign of patriotism in such a way that the politician Scholz could have retaliated. But it seems to have paid off.

Franziska Reisener, a retiree, was one of the many who gathered in Potsdam last Saturday to hear his final speech. He also said he would vote for the SPD, especially based on his belief in Scholz. “He’s the most influential of the three,” he said. “He’s the one who accomplishes it.”