The parties vying to form the next German government are struggling to come to an agreement on such core voter concerns as migration, taxation, and gender issues.
The negotiations highlight the divide between what the centre-right CDU/CSU alliance promised to the electorate and the left-wing policies they are about to implement in order to accommodate their likely coalition partners, the Social Democrats (SPD).
The first round of the official coalition talks ended on Monday, March 24th and, according to media reports, there are still many differences of opinion in significant policy areas.
One such area is migration. During his election campaign, CDU leader Friedrich Merz promised to halt illegal migrants at the border, only to backtrack when it became clear that he would have to give in to the demands of the SPD in order to form a government.
As we previously reported, the SDP wants the exact opposite of what the CDU proposed: to bring in 500,000 people a year, give non-German migrants the right to vote, and make sure that deportations are only a “very last resort.”
The Social Democrats also reject the centre-right’s proposals to cut benefits for asylum seekers, calling such a move inhumane.
While the CDU/CSU generally wants to reduce taxes and their left-wing partners want to increase them, there is also a disagreement on the so-called self-determination act, a piece of legislation adopted last year which allows anyone to legally change their name and gender with a simple application form. The centre-right would like to get rid of it, but the SPD wants to keep it.
The negotiating parties have praised each other in public but behind the scenes all is not well.
Merz and his CDU party are already feeling the brunt of voters’ dissatisfaction for breaking their campaign promises in order to seize power.
A poll released by broadcaster ZDF last week showed 73% of those surveyed felt deceived by Merz, including 44% of CDU/CSU supporters.
Conservative voters are not only dissatisfied with Merz’s U-turn on migration but also with his plans to take on a massive €1 trillion debt to boost the country’s defence and infrastructure—despite vowing not to reform rules on borrowing limits, the so-called ‘debt brake.’
Merz has also given in to the demands of the Greens, namely to put aside €100 million for the government’s existing climate fund and to enshrine in the constitution 2045 as a compulsory climate neutrality deadline.
A new survey shows that the CDU/CSU’s support has dropped to 27% from the 28.5% it received at the elections a month ago. The SPD’s popularity decreased by 2 percentage points to 14.5%.
Meanwhile, the second-placed right-wing Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), which has lambasted Merz for his “orgy of debt,” has seen its popularity grow from 20.8% to an all-time high of 23.5%.
BUNDESTAGSWAHL | Sonntagsfrage INSA/BILD
— Deutschland Wählt (@Wahlen_DE) March 24, 2025
Union: 27,0% (-2,0)
AfD: 23,5% (+1,5)
SPD: 14,5% (-1,0)
GRÜNE: 12,0% (+1,0)
LINKE: 10,5%
BSW: 4,5% (-0,5)
FDP: 3,5% (+0,5)
Sonstige: 4,5% (+0,5)
Änderungen zur letzten Umfrage vom 17. März 2025
Verlauf: https://t.co/f9MV7iZ8iJ#btw29 pic.twitter.com/95N0ZHIL2a
The AfD took up its largest-ever share of the seats—152 MPs—as Germany’s new, 630-seat parliament met for its first session on Tuesday, March 25th
In his speech, AfD parliamentary group leader Stephan Brandner said they will provide a “strong alternative” to the establishment parties who represent the “old, ruined Germany.”
Wir sind die Zukunft! @BrandnerSt #Bundestag #AfD pic.twitter.com/HJUwzP3k9Q
— AfD-Fraktion im Deutschen Bundestag 🇩🇪 (@AfDimBundestag) March 25, 2025
