Berlin
Germany’s next parliamentary election, which will determine the country’s new leader after Chancellor Angela Merkel’s long rule, will be held on Sept. 26, 2021.
President Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s office said Wednesday that the head of state set the date in line with a recommendation from the government. It will be post-World War II Germany’s 20th parliamentary election
Germany holds elections every four years. The lower house of parliament, or Bundestag, elects the chancellor. That may not happen until well after the election, because the process of putting together a governing coalition can be lengthy. After the 2017 election, it was nearly six months before Merkel was sworn in for her fourth term — a record.
Merkel has been chancellor since 2005. She said more than two years ago that she wouldn’t seek a fifth term, and has repeatedly made clear that she won’t change her mind.
At present, it’s hard to guess who will succeed her, and much will depend on whom the leading parties nominate as their candidates for chancellor.
Merkel’s center-right Christian Democratic Union, part of a conservative bloc that is well ahead in polls thanks in part to positive reviews of her management of the coronavirus pandemic, plans to choose a new leader in January.—AP
