Who is Friedrich Merz, and can he fix Germany?
Germany’s next chancellor is an enigma. To some, Friedrich Merz is a populist provocateur; others see him as a staunch conservative or a shrewd economist. If his party, the conservative CDU/CSU, wins the German elections on Feb. 23, he’ll have to rise above these labels and project effective statesmanship fast.
Nobody can be expected to fix Germany’s problems overnight, but with the far-right snapping at their heels, centrists may only have one more chance to shake Germany out of its malaise. The question is: Has Merz got what it takes?
He should certainly be able to hit the ground running. His party has been leading the polls for the last three years and might get twice as many votes as the incumbent Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s center-left SPD. Merz is such a firm favorite to win that some media outlets have taken to calling him Germany’s “chancellor-in-waiting.”
Don’t mistake that solid lead for enthusiasm, though. Polls are giving the conservatives a seemingly immovable vote share of around 30%, which would be the second worst in the party’s history (the worst being 24% in 2021). That is despite the fact that Scholz has had shockingly bad approval ratings. Opposition leader Merz is cruising when he should be soaring.
It’s not immediately obvious what’s holding him back. He may be the oldest chancellor candidate on offer, but “his energetic campaign performances belie his 69 years,” as journalists of the Economist mused when they interviewed him last week. He also seems in a good position to address two of the
