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The battle for chancellor, Olaf Scholz is confident in himself

2025-02-19 08:45:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Olaf Scholz

Olaf Scholz is running again for the SPD in the 2025 elections, despite poor results in the polls.

It was September 2024 when the Social Democrat, Olaf Scholz, was asked in an interview with the Berlin newspaper "Tagesspiegel" what he hoped would be written about him in the history books. The 66-year-old's short and dry answer: "I think we should be careful of politicians who think this before or during their mandate."

Perhaps he is now reflecting a little more. His governing coalition, consisting of the SPD, the Greens and the FDP, disintegrated prematurely. If the SPD loses the snap parliamentary elections on February 23, 2025 and the CDU takes over the chancellorship, then Scholz will become the Social Democratic chancellor with the shortest term in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Olaf Scholz remains optimistic

But Olaf Scholz is determined to win – with the same determination he had in the 2021 parliamentary elections. Then, as now, the SPD was supported by only 15% of the electorate in the polls (with small fluctuations in the polls, ed. note) and Scholz was mocked for his stoic optimism. But a few mistakes by the CDU gave it an advantage and the Social Democrats emerged victorious with 25.7% of the vote.

Scholz has faced many difficult and critical situations in his political career, but as chancellor he has faced more challenges at the same time than any other chancellor before him. Just three months after taking office, Russia invaded Ukraine.

Since then, the question has been how Germany can support Ukraine militarily without getting directly involved in the war. Scholz has approached the issue with caution, but has often been accused of hesitancy. He himself calls this approach "prudence." The war has brought consequences: an energy crisis, inflation, economic decline, conflicts over asylum policy in the EU and the unprecedented rise of the far right.

A government torn by strife

The center-left tripartite coalition between the SPD, the Greens, and the FDP was an alliance full of contradictions. Formed out of the necessity of securing a parliamentary majority, this union of two left-wing parties and a liberal economic party could not function for long. The constant conflicts made this government the most unpopular in the history of the Federal Republic.

But Scholz was not affected by this. He did not let himself be troubled by the loss of public trust and did not react to his low popularity. His motto: listen to the polls, but do not comment on them and do not change policy depending on them. He always repeated: anything is possible.

Social democrat since youth

For Scholz, the position of federal chancellor is the culmination of a political career that began decades ago. He became active in the Social Democratic Youth (Juso), where he supported radical socialist ideas critical of capitalism. After joining the SPD as a student in 1975, he worked for many years as a lawyer specializing in labor law in Hamburg, learning firsthand the mechanisms of the economy and private business. This experience shaped his pragmatic approach to politics.

He began his career in public administration as a senator for the interior in Hamburg, then as federal minister of labor in the first grand coalition under Christian Democratic Chancellor Angela Merkel, and then as mayor of the city-state of Hamburg. In 2018, he returned to Berlin as finance minister and vice chancellor in Chancellor Merkel's government.

Speeches from "Scholzomati"

One of the nicknames that has followed Scholz throughout his career is "Scholzomat", a combination of the words "Scholz" and "automat". This word was coined by the weekly newspaper "Die Zeit", during his time as general secretary of the SPD (2002-2004), to describe his way of communicating: technical, bureaucratic and cold, like a machine repeating the same political messages.

This image of a boring, uncharismatic bureaucrat followed him for years. Scholz himself considers himself a work-oriented pragmatist who speaks only as much as necessary.

The SPD did not want him as chairman.

Only later did he realize that politics also requires the ability to communicate and build a personal image. During the race for the SPD leadership in 2019, he tried to change this image: he appeared more emotional, more approachable and more smiling. But, again, he did not win the party's trust. The SPD was looking for a more left-wing leader and chose a different duo at the top.

From loser to candidate for chancellor

Scholz also faced this defeat with equanimity. He continued to work as finance minister and did not interfere in the new party leadership, waiting for his moment. In the end, the SPD nominated him as its candidate for chancellor, knowing that none of its leaders had the necessary experience to challenge the CDU.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Scholz was quick to provide loans and financial aid, becoming a key figure in the crisis. He used short, clear phrases like "Wumms" and "Doppel-Wumms," meaning concentrated, or doubly concentrated, actions, giving him an image of a leader who acts quickly.

The Chancellor of Few Words

Even as chancellor, Scholz continued to be reserved and taciturn, failing to understand that communication is an essential part of the job. His silence at key moments and the lack of clarity in his speeches caused his popularity to decline.

Some in the SPD thought the party would have a better chance if the candidate for chancellor were Defense Minister Boris Pistorius. He is the most popular politician in the polls. But in November 2024, Pistorius openly declared his support for Scholz, putting an end to the speculation.

Will this help Scholz secure a second term? That remains to be seen in the elections on February 23, 2025./ DW