Social Democrats narrowly beat Angela Merkel's bloc in German vote
Berlin (AP): Germany's center-left Social Democrats won the biggest share of the vote in a national election Sunday, narrowly beating outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel 's center-right Union bloc in a closely fought race that will determine who succeeds the long-time leader at the helm of Europe's biggest economy.
The Social Democrats' candidate Olaf Scholz, the outgoing vice chancellor and finance minister who pulled his party out of a years-long slump, said the outcome was a very clear mandate to ensure now that we put together a good, pragmatic government for Germany.
Despite getting its worst-ever result in a federal contest, the Union bloc said it too would reach out to smaller parties to discuss forming a government, while Merkel stays on in a caretaker role until a successor is sworn in.
Election officials said early Monday that a count of all 299 constituencies showed the Social Democrats received 25.9% of the vote, ahead of 24.1% for the Union bloc. No winning party in a German national election had previously taken less than 31% of the vote.
Armin Laschet, the governor of North Rhine-Westphalia state who outmaneuvered a more popular rival to secure the nomination of Merkel's Union bloc, had struggled to motivate the party's base and suffered a series of missteps.
Of course, this is a loss of votes that isn't pretty, Laschet said of results that looked set to undercut by some measure the Union's previous worst showing of 31% in 1949. But he added that with Merkel departing after 16 years in power, no one had an incumbent bonus in this election.
Laschet told supporters that we will do everything we can to form a government under the Union's leadership, because Germany now needs a coalition for the future that modernizes our country.
Both Laschet and Scholz will be courting the same two parties: the environmentalist Greens, who were third with 14.8%; and the pro-business Free Democrats, who took 11.5% of the vote.
The Greens traditionally lean toward the Social Democrats and the Free Democrats toward the Union, but neither ruled out going the other way.
The other option was a repeat of the outgoing grand coalition of the Union and Social Democrats that has run Germany for 12 of Merkel's 16 years in power, but there was little obvious appetite for that after years of government squabbling.
Everyone thinks that ... this grand coalition' isn't promising for the future, regardless of who is No. 1 and No. 2, Laschet said. We need a real new beginning.
The Free Democrats' leader, Christian Lindner, appeared keen to govern, suggesting that his party and the Greens should make the first move.
About 75% of Germans didn't vote for the next chancellor's party, Lindner said in a post-election debate with all parties' leaders on public broadcaster ZDF. So it might be advisable ... that the Greens and Free Democrats first speak to each other to structure everything that follows.
Baerbock insisted that the climate crisis ... is the leading issue of the next government, and that is for us the basis for any talks ... even if we aren't totally satisfied with our result.
While the Greens improved their support from the last election in 2017, they had higher expectations for Sunday's vote.
The Left Party was projected to win only 4.9% of the vote and risked being kicked out of parliament entirely. The far-right Alternative for Germany which no one else wants to work with received 10.3%. This was about 2 percentage points less than in 2017, when it first entered parliament.
Due to Germany's complicated electoral system, a full breakdown of the result by seats in parliament was still pending.
Merkel, who has won plaudits for steering Germany through several major crises, won't be an easy leader to follow. Her successor will have to oversee the country's recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, which Germany so far has weathered relatively well thanks to large rescue programs.
Germany's leading parties have significant differences when it comes to taxation and tackling climate change.
Foreign policy didn't feature much in the campaign, although the Greens favor a tougher stance toward China and Russia.
Whichever parties form the next German government, the Free Democrats' Lindner said it was good news that it would have a majority with centrist parties.
All of those in Europe and beyond who were worried about Germany's stability can now see: Germany will be stable in any case, he said.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez sent early congratulations to Scholz.
Spain and Germany will continue to work together for a stronger Europe and for a fair and green recovery that leaves no one behind, he wrote on Twitter.
In two regional elections also held Sunday, the Social Democrats looked set to defend the post of Berlin mayor that they have held for two decades. The party was also on course for a strong win in the northeastern state of Mecklenburg Western-Pomerania.
For the first time since 1949, the Danish minority party SSW was set to win a seat in parliament, officials said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Congress chief Kharge writes to PM Modi, seeks time to explain party's 'Nyay Patra'
New Delhi, Apr 25: Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sought time from him to explain in person the party's 'Nyay Patra'.
In his two-page letter, he told the prime minister that he is being misinformed by his advisors about things that are not even written in the 'Nyay Patra' -- the Congress' manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections.
The letter comes after the prime minister attacked the Congress over its manifesto, alleging that the party aims to "redistribute the wealth" of people and give it away to "infiltrators".
Modi also accused the Congress of snatching women's "mangalsutra".
In his letter, Kharge said the Congress' 'Nyay Patra' aims at providing "nyay (justice)" to the youngsters, women, farmers, labourers and marginalised people across all castes and communities.
"It has become your habit to seize on a few words taken out of context and create a communal divide. You are lowering the dignity of the chair by speaking in this manner," he said.
"You are being misinformed by your advisors about things that are not even written in our manifesto. I would be more than happy to meet you in person to explain our 'Nyay Patra' so that, as prime minister of the country, you don't make any statements that are false," he added.
The Congress chief also said he is neither shocked nor surprised by the language used by the prime minister in his recent speeches.
"It was expected that you and other leaders from your party would start speaking in this manner after you saw the dismal performance of the BJP in the first phase of the elections," Kharge said in the letter.
The Congress has been talking about the deprived poor and their rights ("nyay"), he said and added, "We are aware that you and your government do not have any concern for the poor and dispossessed."
"Your 'suit-boot ki sarkar' works for the corporates whose taxes you reduced while the salaried class pays higher taxes. The poor pay GST even on food and salt and the rich corporate claim GST refunds. That is why, when we talk of inequality between the rich and the poor, you are purposely equating it with Hindu and Muslim," Kharge claimed.
"Our manifesto is for the people of India -- whether they are Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Jain or Buddhist. I think you have still not forgotten your pre-Independence allies the Muslim League and colonial masters," he charged.
Kharge claimed the Congress has always served to empower the poor while "you have ruled to snatch the earnings and wealth of the poor".
He said in the letter, "Your government was the one who used demonetisation as an 'organised loot and legalised plunder' to transfer the money deposited by the poor in the banks to the rich in the form of loans. Then, as part a of conscious design, these loans were surreptitiously written off by your government. The lakhs of crores of corporate loans that your government has written off since 2014 is a transfer of wealth from poor to rich. No farmer's loans, artisan's loans, MSME loans or student loans were waived off by you."
"You and your government have repeatedly turned away from the atrocities that the poor and backward women are facing … Today, you talk about their 'mangalsutra'. Isn't your government responsible for the atrocities against women in Manipur, against Dalit girls, garlanding of rapists? When farmers are committing suicide under your government, how are you protecting their wives and children?," Kharge asked.
The Congress chief suggested that Modi read about "Nari Nyay" that, he said, the party will implement when its comes to power.
Kharge also advised the prime minister to not "get carried away by your own people who are clapping at your speeches".
"They are not allowing you to hear the crores of right-thinking citizens who are disappointed by your speeches," the Congress chief said.
Sharing Kharge's letter on X, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge ji has just written to the prime minister, saying that he would be happy to meet him to explain the reality of the Congress' 'Nyay Patra', which Mr Modi may have missed in his persistent efforts to distort and defame it."
कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष मल्लिकार्जुन @kharge जी ने अभी प्रधानमंत्री को पत्र लिखकर उनसे मिलने का समय मांगा है। प्रधानमंत्री #CongressNyayPatra पत्र की जिन चीज़ों को लेकर भ्रम फैला रहे हैं और लोगों को गुमराह करने की नाकाम कोशिश कर रहे हैं, उन्हें खरगे जी प्रधानमंत्री को मिलकर सही अर्थों… pic.twitter.com/7D4Mk085je
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) April 25, 2024
