Scholz Calls for Snap German Election as Coalition Collapses

Chancellor fires finance chief after repeated policy clashes
January confidence vote set to trigger national vote in March

Olaf Scholz addresses a press conference at the Chancellery in Berlin, on Nov. 6.Photographer: Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty Images

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By Michael Nienaber, Kamil Kowalcze, and Arne Delfs

November 6, 2024 at 7:54 PM UTC

Updated on

November 7, 2024 at 7:25 AM UTC

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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called for a snap election after divisions over how to revive the lackluster economy triggered the breakup of his fractious three-party ruling coalition.

The crisis came to a head with Scholz’s shock dismissal of Finance Minister Christian Lindner late Wednesday, saying that the chairman of the pro-business FDP party had refused a proposal to suspend rules limiting new government borrowing. Scholz called for a confidence vote in January, with a goal of pulling forward next year’s federal election to March from September.