German president dissolves parliament, sets new elections for Feb. 23

BERLIN

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Friday announced his decision to dissolve the German parliament (Bundestag) and set Feb. 23 as the date for new general elections.

Dissolving parliament “now is the right way,” Steinmeier told the press in Berlin.

“In difficult times like now, stability requires an effective government and reliable majorities in parliament,” he added.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz had asked the Bundestag for a vote of confidence on Dec. 16 after the coalition made up of the Social Democrats (SPD), Greens, and Free Democrats (FDP) broke up in November after only around three years. Scholz did not receive a majority for his motion – as he intended. He then asked Steinmeier to dissolve the Bundestag in line with Article 68 of the Constitution.​​​​​​​

According to that article, the president can, at the suggestion of the chancellor, dissolve the Bundestag within 21 days if the latter loses the vote of confidence. Article 39 stipulates that the new election must then take place within 60 days.

Scholz's vote of confidence was only the sixth in the history of the federal republic. The Bundestag was previously dissolved in three instances.​​​​​​​