A tired-looking Olaf Scholz said that just as the 2021 victory was his, the 2025 defeat was also his
Alice Weidel, co-leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, and Christian Lindner, leader of the liberal Free Democratic Party, take part in a discussion at a TV studio in Berlin on Sunday, the day of Germany 's federal election.
“I am aware of the dimensions of the task ahead of us, and I know that it won’t be easy,” said Merz, injecting a note of realism into the party atmosphere. Looking tired, Scholz said, just as the 2021 was his victory, the 2025 defeat was his, too. As SPD officials began making plans for a post-Scholz future, they groaned at the prospect of a three-way coalition with the pro-business FDP.
Though still excluded from coalition talks, AfD co-leader Alice Weidel insisted “no political shift is possible in Germany without us”.
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