Vote21 - German elections set the scene for key decade of energy transition
- Contents
- Choice of candidates to kick off German chancellor race
- Lobbying scandal halts German renewables talks, shakes up election outlook
- German state votes deal blow to CDU's post-Merkel hopes while Greens get boost
- Vote in German carmaker state foreshadows national election amid pandemic uncertainty
- Facts & dates for Germany's packed election year
- Tracking climate and energy in Germany's election
- New CDU leader brings continuity with Merkel era but comes with stained climate reputation
- German conservatives pick leader set to shape handling of Merkel's climate legacy
- Germany faces packed election year as voters weigh climate against pandemic recovery
- German Greens vow to speed up low-carbon transition
- German Greens call on climate activists for unity in election goals
Choice of candidates to kick off German chancellor race
Germany’s ruling conservatives and the Greens are about to kick off the 2021 national election race in earnest by naming their respective leading candidates to take over the helm of Europe’s biggest economy in autumn. While the country has firmly set sails for climate neutrality by 2050, the camps’ choices could prove critical for the speed of the energy transition in this decade. Engulfed by a lobbying scandal and accused of mishandling the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, chancellor Angela Merkel’s CDU/CSU alliance has plummeted in the polls and lost what looked like a guaranteed pole position for the chancellery. It must make the difficult choice between the natural candidate – Armin Laschet, leader of the bigger partner CDU – and much more popular Bavarian CSU head Markus Söder. The Greens – for the first time with a modest but realistic chance to lead a federal government – will select one of their co-leaders Robert Habeck or Annalena Baerbock. The latter is the only female contender in the race. The Social Democrats – who have already nominated finance minister Olaf Scholz – are trailing behind the Green Party in current polls, narrowing their chances of grabbing the government’s top position. Read the article here.
Lobbying scandal halts German renewables talks, shakes up election outlook
Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) have put key talks about the expansion of renewable energies on hold because of lobbying allegations against yet another parliamentarian of chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc. The lobbying scandal engulfing the conservative CDU/CSU alliance has derailed important talks about Germany's plans for rolling out renewables. The affair also dampens the Conservatives' hopes of an unchallenged victory in September's general elections. Read the article here.
German state votes deal blow to CDU's post-Merkel hopes while Greens get boost
"Super election year" 2021 in Germany has been kicked off with a resounding defeat of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative CDU in two state elections that saw the party incur historic losses. For the rivalling Green Party and the Social Democrats (SPD), the votes in Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate have brought fresh hope that the conservatives' sway might fade away when popular long-time leader Merkel retires after the national elections in September. The Green Party was able to celebrate record win in wealthy state Baden-Württemberg. It also largely fended off competition from a new climate party launched only months earlier that has vowed to sting the Greens into demanding even more ambitious climate policy. Only losing a few percentage points to the 'Climate List' could hamper the Greens' prospects for forming a centre-left coalition that could bring the country its first Green chancellor. Read the article here.
Vote in German carmaker state foreshadows national election amid pandemic uncertainty
A regional vote in the south-western German state of Baden-Württemberg on 14 March kicks off a busy election year in Germany. While the regional vote in the western state of Rhineland-Palatinate takes place the same day, the focus will be on the ballot in the bigger affluent state known for its strong automotive industry. The vote is likely to come down to a contest for leadership between the Green Party and the conservative CDU. Many climate activists in the only state led by the Green Party see its popularity among more conservative voters as a sign that it has become too timid on climate issues. Just a week ahead of the vote, an affair over MPs using the state's protective mask procurement programme for personal gain that is shaking the conservative CDU/CSU alliance has illustrated the wealth of uncertainties the COVID-19 pandemic still holds for the election year. Read the article here.
Facts & dates for Germany's packed election year
Germany will head to the polls in autumn 2021 to elect a new federal parliament and government. More than 60 million people are invited to decide who will follow on the outgoing Angela Merkel as next chancellor and oversee the climate and energy policy of Europe's largest economy for the next four years. Clean Energy Wire has compiled contacts, links and other information to help journalists report on Germany's 2021 federal elections. Find the factsheet here.
Tracking climate and energy in Germany's election
Germany is set to vote for a new government in autumn 2021. After 16 years at the helm of Europe's largest economy, Chancellor Angela Merkel will make room for a successor who is going to shape the country's energy and climate policy in the first half of a decade viewed as crucial for international emissions reduction efforts. With the COVID-19 pandemic still looming large and Germany and the EU poised to take momentous decisions for the goal of 2050 climate neutrality, Clean Energy Wire traces the steps leading up to the election and will highlight developments in climate and energy policy by all major parties in this regularly updated news overview.
New CDU leader brings continuity with Merkel era but comes with stained climate reputation
Armin Laschet has been elected the new leader of Germany's largest party, the Christian Democrats (CDU), clearing a major hurdle on what could be his way to becoming next German Chancellor. The premier of Germany's largest federal state, the traditional industry and coal mining heartland of North Rhine-Westphalia, is seen as a loyalist to Angela Merkel and stands for continuity with the parting long-term leader's centrist course. However, Laschet's reputation in climate policy is dominated by his pro-industry positioning in the country's coal exit negotiations and his government's heavy-handed handling of protests against a new lignite mine. Read the article here.
German conservatives pick leader set to shape handling of Merkel's climate legacy
Three men compete to take the lead of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Germany's largest party, and to possibly follow in the footsteps of Chancellor Angela Merkel, who leaves office after 16 years in September amid a global health and an intensifying climate crisis. The CDU's vote on 15-16 January kicks off a busy election year at a time when the country has to reconcile its short-term economic needs caused by the pandemic with long-term strategic planning in order to put Germany and Europe on a more sustainable path. Whoever wins the conservatives' leadership contest is unlikely to fundamentally alter Germany's climate and energy policy approach, but the new leadership’s style, tone and coalition options will likely be put to the test during the pre-election contest. And a fourth conservative contender for the Chancellery could also still arise from the CDU's Bavarian sister party CSU. Read the article here.
Germany faces packed election year as voters weigh climate against pandemic recovery
The era of Chancellor Angela Merkel will come to an end when Germans head to the polls next autumn after what looks set to become an unusually dramatic run-up to the federal elections. With no clear front-runner for her succession in sight and the coronavirus pandemic adding huge uncertainties, the elections may result in unprecedented government coalitions that might eventually determine the climate ambitions of Europe's largest economy. The coronavirus pandemic is likely to loom large in the election year and could still grow in weight as the economic fallout makes itself felt. However, it seems unlikely to override citizens' increasing commitment to environmentally friendly policies. Read the article here.
German Greens vow to speed up low-carbon transition
Germany's Greens have backed a more ambitious climate target in a bid to defuse growing tensions with more radical activists. At a virtual convention designed to showcase the party's ability to govern Europe's largest economy less than a year before general elections, delegates agreed to the target of getting "on the path" to limiting the rise of global temperatures to 1.5 degrees. But in an effort not to alienate more mainstream voters, the party refused to include an autobahn speed limit and many other more radical proposals in its new manifesto. Read the article here.
German Greens call on climate activists for unity in election goals
Leading members of Germany's Green Party have called on climate activists to cooperate in the country's general elections next year. They warn that more radical climate platforms competing in elections could harm the fight against climate change, as they could drain votes from the party that stands a good chance to become part of the next German federal government. Read the article here.
