2005 German federal election
Federal elections were held in Germany on 18 September 2005 to elect the members of the 16th Bundestag. The snap election was called after the government's defeat in the North Rhine-Westphalia state election, which caused them to intentionally lose a motion of confidence to trigger an early federal election. The outgoing government was a coalition of the centre-left Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and Alliance 90/The Greens, led by federal Chancellor Gerhard Schröder. The election was originally intended for the autumn of 2006.[1][2]
All 614 seats in the Bundestag, including 16 overhang seats
308 seats needed for a majority
61,870,711 
0.7%
48,044,134 (77.7%) 
1.4pp
The opposition Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU), with its sister party the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU), started the campaign with a strong lead over the SPD in opinion polls. The government was generally expected to suffer a major defeat and be replaced by a coalition of the CDU/CSU and the liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP), with CDU leader Angela Merkel becoming chancellor. However, the CDU/CSU ultimately lost vote share compared to its 2002 result, falling to 35%. The SPD suffered losses but finished just one percentage point behind the CDU/CSU, winning 34%. Exit polls showed clearly that neither the SPD–Green nor CDU/CSU–FDP coalitions had won a majority of seats in the Bundestag. The FDP placed third on just under 10% of votes, its best result since 1990, while the Greens suffered small losses. The major stumbling block to a parliamentary majority was the new Left Party, led by Gregor Gysi and former SPD chairman Oskar Lafontaine, which won 8.7% of votes and 54 seats. The CDU/CSU and SPD both rejected cooperation with the Left Party.
Both Schröder and Merkel claimed victory, but the formation of a new government required careful negotiations, as no conventional arrangement could achieve a majority. The CDU/CSU sought talks with the Greens, but were unable to find common ground. Discussions ultimately began for a grand coalition between the CDU/CSU and SPD. On 10 October, officials from both parties indicated that negotiations had concluded successfully and that they would form a coalition government with Angela Merkel as chancellor.[3] The Bundestag met on 22 November and Merkel was elected chancellor, with 397 votes in favour.[4]
Background[edit]
On 22 May 2005, state elections were held in North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany, where the SPD had led the state government continuously since 1966. The election saw the government of Minister-President Peer Steinbrück defeated. It also resulted in the opposition CDU and FDP claiming a majority in the Bundesrat, the upper house of the federal legislature. The same day, federal Chancellor Schröder and SPD Bundestag group leader Franz Müntefering announced they would seek early federal elections. They claimed the North Rhine-Westphalia result was indicative of a lack of public confidence in the federal government.[5]
Early federal elections may only be held under two circumstances: if the Bundestag rejects a candidate for chancellor three times, or if a motion of confidence in the government fails to achieve an absolute majority in the Bundestag. In either case, the president may, at request of the chancellor, dissolve the Bundestag and order new elections. The latter method had been utilised on two occasions previously, in 1972 and 1983, by incumbent governments intentionally failing motions of confidence.[6] Schröder became the third chancellor to do this, with a motion of confidence on 1 July failing with 151 votes in favour, 296 against, and 148 abstentions. Schröder called on SPD members to abstain from the vote, which would allow him to fall short of the required threshold.[7] President Horst Köhler then dissolved the Bundestag and scheduled new elections.
Both Angela Merkel (CDU) and Gerhard Schröder (SPD) claimed victory and the chancellorship as the exit polls came in. It soon became clear that neither could form a majority government within the existing coalitions. Largely because of strong hostility between Schröder and Oskar Lafontaine, a former SPD chairman turned leader of the Left Party, the obvious left-wing coalition of the SPD, Greens and Left Party was not possible. However, both the CDU and SPD said that they would negotiate with all parties that had won seats except the Left Party, while the leaders of the Left Party rejected any possibility of participating in a coalition with either of the two main parties.
In the Elefantenrunde (elephant round) programme on election night featuring all party leaders, Schröder, in a memorable performance, insisted he had won on the basis of how far behind the SPD was in pre-election polls but managing to close the gap with the CDU/CSU to just one percent. Although the SPD still fell behind the CDU/CSU, he said "nobody but me is capable of building a stable coalition"[13] and accused the moderators of having "an intellectual problem". The chancellor then declared to Merkel "Under her leadership she will never get a coalition with my party" and insisted that the CDU and CSU should be treated as separate parties. His performance during the programme was criticized by the media, CDU/CSU and the FDP as "shocking", "egocentric", "arrogant" and "bizarre". The Berliner Kurier newspaper headline asked if Schröder was "intoxicated by his victory or did he have one glass of wine too many?".[14] Schröder himself later called his behavior "suboptimal" but denied he was drunk.[15]
The exclusion of the Left Party reduced the possible coalitions to the following three arrangements:
Despite some prominent members publicly blaming Merkel for its poor showing, the CDU/CSU confirmed her as leader on 20 September.[16] On 22 September, following Schröder's election night comments, SPD members began musing that the political system should consider the CDU and the CSU as separate entities rather than as a single parliamentary faction. In such a scenario, the SPD would be the largest party in the Bundestag and thus, they argued, an SPD member should become chancellor in any grand coalition. One SPD legislator indicated he planned to introduce a motion in the Bundestag explicitly defining the CDU and the CSU as separate parties. The Greens rejected coalition with the CDU/CSU after talks broke down.[17] The CDU/CSU pressed their case for the Chancellery after victory in the delayed vote in Dresden, and ahead of talks with the SPD; the SPD maintained their own claim, but Schröder indicated that he would step aside if his party wished it.[18]
Finally, on 10 October, officials from the CDU/CSU and the SPD announced that negotiations to form a grand coalition had succeeded. Angela Merkel would become chancellor and the sixteen seats in the new cabinet (including the Chancellery) would go equally to each side, with the CDU/CSU and the SPD each having eight posts. The SPD would control eight ministries including the important roles of finance and foreign affairs, while the CDU/CSU would control six ministries as well as providing the chancellor and the Director of the Federal Chancellery (the Chancellor's Chief of Staff), who would also hold the position of Minister for Special Affairs.[19][20] Gerhard Schröder would retire from politics.[21][22]
Detailed negotiations on the formation of the new government continued into November, with Edmund Stoiber of the CSU withdrawing from the proposed cabinet to continue as Minister-president of Bavaria. All three parties held conferences on 14 November which voted to approve the deal.[23] The majority of CDU/CSU and SPD delegates in the newly assembled Bundestag elected Merkel as chancellor on 22 November.[24] 397 members of the Bundestag voted for Merkel, indicating that 51 members from one or more of the SPD, CDU or CSU do not support the coalition deal.
Reports have indicated that the grand coalition would pursue a mix of policies, some of which directly contradict aspects of Merkel's political platform as a former leader of the opposition and candidate for chancellor. The coalition intended to cut public spending while increasing VAT, social-insurance contributions and the top rate of income tax.[25] Employment protection would no longer cover employees during their first two years in a job, and the new government intended to freeze pensions and to scrap subsidies for first-time home buyers. In the field of foreign policy, Germany would maintain its strong ties with France and with Poland, and will continue its support for Turkey as a future member of the European Union. Merkel has defined the main aim of her government as reducing unemployment, and expressed the hope that posterity will judge the success of her tenure on the basis of this issue.[26]