Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Merkel said to aim to renew union
Negotiation on forming government turn to former partner
BERLIN — German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party is betting on a revived alliance with the Social Democrats to dodge the risk of a snap return to the ballot, according to people familiar with discussions in Berlin.
While Merkel has publicly stated she’s open to elections, her preference is to renew the alliance with the Social Democratic Party that underpinned two of her three terms, including the past four years, the people said. Merkel’s supporters expect public and political pressure to mount and to force the party to abandon its aversion, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. The move would need to overcome resistance from the Social Democrats’ leadership, as well as rank and file, after the party got battered by previous pacts.
“A grand coalition would mean continuity and stability in Germany and would therefore be desirable,” said Holger Schmieding, chief economist from Berenberg Bank. “But the Social Democrats would demand a high price for such an alliance, and that wouldn’t necessarily be good for the German economy.”
After coalition talks with the Free Democrats and the Greens collapsed Sunday, Merkel and her Christian Democratic-led bloc are seeking to dial up the pressure on the Social Democrats. The goal is to appeal to the need for German stability at a critical time for the country and the European Union amid nationalist pressures and challenges posed by the United Kingdom’s planned exit from the bloc.
The main argument for an about-face by the Social Democrats is that a so-called grand coalition would be the lesser of two evils. Refusing a role in government and holding out for new elections could lead to even weaker results after the Social Democrats slumped to their worst showing since World War II in the September ballot.
“I do hope that they will reflect very intensely about whether they should step up and take responsibility,” Merkel said Monday on ZDF television.
The push for a grand coalition appears to have an important ally in President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, a former Social Democratic challenger for the chancellery who became Germany’s nonpartisan head of state in March. The former foreign minister has been thrust into a key role in forming a government and on Monday urged all political parties to reconsider their positions.
The call to civic duty includes his former Social Democratic colleagues, most notably leader Martin Schulz, Merkel’s chief rival for chancellorship in the September vote. On Monday, he reiterated his aversion to renewing an alliance with Merkel’s conservative bloc, but Schulz’s backing in the Social Democratic Party is tenuous after running a flat campaign against Merkel.
Steinmeier started talks with Merkel on Monday and met with the Greens and the Free Democratic Party on Tuesday. The Free Democrats won’t make any effort to revive negotiations with Merkel, an official briefed on the talks said after Free Democratic head Christian Lindner met the president.
Lindner has said it’s up to the Social Democrats to talk to Merkel about getting back together. Today, the president will see Horst Seehofer, leader of Merkel’s Bavarian sister party, before consulting with Schulz on Thursday, according to a presidential spokesman.
Schulz has staked his leadership on taking the Social Democrats into opposition. While he has the support of the left wing of the party, including parliamentary caucus leader Andrea Nahles, he is under pressure from some in the conservative faction to reconsider.
“No one really wants a new election, but it is nevertheless an option that we won’t shy away from,” Nahles said Monday.