Germany is having an identity crisis: It's trains no longer run on time. Not even close.
Here's how bad it's gotten: Switzerland has stopped allowing some German trains past the border city of Basel because they're messing up the (more reliable) Swiss network
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Aaand he's in. Friedrich Merz is Germany's new chancellor. Amid soaring global tensions, Germany’s allies are looking to Berlin to anchor a reimagined European security strategy. But today's unexpected setback has cast doubt over the long-sought stability.
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BSW leader Sahra Wagenknecht said she's considering having the election results legally reviewed after narrowly missing the 5% threshold by 0.03 points. If BSW were in fact to hold seats in the Bundestag, the majority situation would change and Merz' hopes of a two-party coalition would be scuppered
After the leftist populist BSW and the neo-liberal FDP failed to cross the 5% threshold to sit in the Bundestag, the only viable two-party coalition for the conservative Union would be with the Social Dems. All parties rule out coalition with the far-right AfD, who said they are still open to talks.
Final preliminary result is out: Friedrich Merz is one step closer to the chancellery after Germany's conservative CDU/CSU won Sunday's election. But it's a weak win. It was the Union's second-worst federal election result.
The far-right AfD, meanwhile, doubled its 2021 result to finish second.
Moin.
