German government in jeopardy after Social Democrat leader quits
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel vowed to continue with her government after the leader of the center-left Social Democrats, a junior partner in the coalition, resigned following a series of disappointing election results.
In a surprise announcement, Andrea Nahles had announced she planned to quit, saying she wanted “clarity” after questions were raised about her ability to lead the Social Democrats. The party finished third in last month’s European Parliament election, receiving 15.8% of the vote behind Merkel’s center-right Union bloc with 28.9% and the Greens with 20.5%.
Merkel voiced respect for Nahles’ decision, calling her a “fine character” who she had worked with closely over the years.
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the leader of Merkel’s CDU also sought to downplay the possibility that the “grand coalition” of Germany’s two biggest parties would collapse.
Kramp-Karrenbauer said she is assuming that the Social Democrats will now swiftly make the necessary personnel decisions without compromising the coalition government.
Nahles took over as party leader in February 2018, as the Social Democrats reluctantly extended their coalition with Merkel’s conservatives following a poor showing in the previous year’s German election.
While the Social Democrats have managed to push through their agenda of improving social welfare and working conditions for millions of Germans, voters haven’t rewarded the party for it in the polls.
An election loss last week in a longtime bastion of the Social Democrats, the tiny northwestern state of Bremen, and the prospect of further defeats in upcoming regional votes in eastern Germany this fall has alarmed many in the party.
Nahles’ deputy Malu Dreyer, the governor of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate told reporters in Berlin that senior party officials would meet Monday to discuss the next steps.
Former party leader Sigmar Gabriel told the daily Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung that the Social Democrats needed a “detox” to prevent internal power struggles from further harming the party.
