About two weeks ago, Germany’s Parliament elected Olaf Scholz as the ninth post-World War II chancellor. In early December, the 64-year-old's government official replaced Angela Merkel after her 16-year tenure. People in established Western democracies are never baffled by the question of whom to elect. They vote for an appropriate party or leader who is in tune with current political issues. The newly-elected government leader served as Vice Chancellor for about 5 years under Angela Merkel as well as Federal Minister of Finance. After he had been formally appointed by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Mr. Scholz took his oath of office at the Bundestag. He pledged to give the highest priority to the German citizens’ well-being apart from other issues of his policy. His appointment was not a surprise as he had proven himself as a successor of Angela Merkel long ago. The new Chancellor has won a reputation of a reliable policymaker capable of solving burning domestic and international political issues ranging from global climate change to relations with assertive Russia and China.
The coalition government with Olaf Scholz at the helm unites three parties: center-left Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens, and the business-friendly Free Democrats (FDP). The ideological opponents of his native party advocate for increasing government spending and environmental protection. All in all, Germany still pursues the idea of European integration and aims to pump up investment in green energy.
