German election: Who are the top candidates and what are their policy priorities?

Germany will head to the polls for snap federal elections on 23 February in a vote that will shape the course of the EU's largest member state and its biggest — albeit faltering — economy for the next four years.

With less than two weeks to go, here is Euronews' guide to how Germany got here, the main political contenders, and their policy priorities.

How did we get here?

The election was originally scheduled for 28 September, but was dramatically pulled forward after Social Democrat Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three-way coalition, which had led Germany since 2021, collapsed in November.

The coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), Free Democratic Party (FDP) and Greens fell apart amidst the country's economic and security challenges and the weight of its own ideological differences — culminating in Scholz firing his liberal finance minister Christian Lindner (FDP) over a bitter budget dispute.

Scholz then called a confidence vote in parliament with the aim of losing it, which he did, triggering the process that led to the snap elections being set for 23 February.

An unexpectedly short election campaign has been marred by an intense debate over migration and security following two fatal attacks in the cities of Magdeburg and Aschaffenburg, in which the suspects were from Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) were included in passing a motion in parliament for the first time in the party's existence — triggering intense backlash and protests nationwide. The motion called for a dramatic overhaul of immigration rules.

Amid the election campaign fever, Germany's economic outlook remains dire. The new government will inherit an economy that has shrunk for two years in a row for the first time in decades, burdened by bureaucracy, rising energy costs, and a once-crucial car industry struggling to keep up with demand for electric vehicles.

Who are the top candidates and what are their policies?

Friedrich Merz (CDU)

The frontrunner for the vote is Friedrich Merz of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

The latest opinion polls show the CDU leading with 30%, representing a significant lead of 10 percentage points ahead over the AfD in second place. Merz himself is also the country's preferred chancellor, according to surveys, leading comfortably with 32%.

His party is pushing for tax cuts, reform of the country's ailing military as well as a radical overhaul of the country's immigration and asylum rules — a proposal that has triggered chaos in the Bundestag weeks ahead of the election.

Merz — a former investment banker and once rival of his party leader predecessor Angela Merkel — has presented "Agenda 2030", which aims to revitalise Germany's economy. It wants to lower corporation tax to 25% and raise the level of when the top income tax rate kicks in to €80,000 from around €67,000.

Merz's party has proposed investing in Germany's domestic security, equipping so-called "danger areas" with surveillance systems. It wants to continue spending at least 2% of GDP on defence, revamp the country's military — including introducing some form of compulsory military service — and continue providing aid to Ukraine.

He has suggested he would find the cash for at least some of his changes by altering Germany's benefits system, including withdrawing payments from adults that show "unwillingness to work".

While the party wants to stick to limits set by Germany's constitutional debt brake, Merz has recently suggested he might be willing to reform some rules, in particular to increase defence spending.

The CDU has, in recent weeks, cemented immigration as one of its top priorities.

The party has passed a non-binding five point plan that, among other things, calls for turning migrants away from Germany's borders — a measure which is out of step with European-wide asylum law.

Other suggestions include the removal of family reunification for those with subsidiary protection — a measure Merz tried and failed to push through parliament last week — deportations of migrants to Syria and Afghanistan, revoking passports for naturalised Germans convicted of crimes, and scaling back aid programmes for asylum seekers.

Merz's party wants Germany to play a stronger role on the international stage and to build a national security council. It has also pushed to reduce bureaucracy in the EU and make it more competitive.

Olaf Scholz (SPD)

Outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz's SPD has been polling steadily in third place for several months, with the latest survey putting the party on 15%. Scholz himself is also in third place as German voters' preferred chancellor — on 18% — the polls show.

The party's popularity has taken a hit since Germany's last election in 2021 when it came first with 25% of the vote — largely as a result of leading an unpopular and acrimonious governing coalition.

Unlike the CDU, the AfD and the pro-business FDP, the SPD wants reform of the debt brake, which it says could be used to stimulate public investment and invest in infrastructure.

This includes a debt-financed investment fund worth €100 billion to increase public investments in infrastructure and the green transition. The SPD also wants to lower income tax for most households and increase taxes on the super-rich.

The party is in favour of Germany's current social security system but has said it would increase pressure on the long-term unemployed to find work. To help low-income workers, it has proposed raising the national minimum wage from €12.41 to €15 an hour. 

The party has hardened its stance on immigration and says it wants to accelerate the deportation of rejected asylum seekers and maintain border controls at land crossings.

It does, however, want to stick to its citizenship law that allowed dual citizenship and make it easier for IT experts and other qualified professionals to come to Germany from abroad.

Scholz has found himself under fire during the election campaign for blocking support to Ukraine, citing a lack of available funds and backed by some war-weary SPD members.

Despite this, Ukraine is a prominent part of the SPD's manifesto with the party proposing to support the country with weapons and equipment, as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's vision of a peace deal. The SPD wants to keep spending at least 2% of GDP on defence — which it achieved last year — and deepen EU integration.

Alice Weidel (AfD)

AfD candidate Alice Weidel has made headlines for her unexpected bond with tech billionaire Elon Musk.

The former economist, who speaks fluent Chinese and lives with her partner in Switzerland, is currently in fourth place as preferred chancellor — on 13% — while her party is second with 20% of the vote, according to the polls.

The party is well-known for its tough stance on immigration. The AfD want to close Germany's land borders and has called for mass deportations under what they call "remigration".

Weidel has proposed lower taxes and a radical reduction on bureaucracy. The AfD wants to stick to the debt brake, but its manifesto is vague on how the party would fund extra spending.

The party is friendly towards Russia, calling for the end to sanctions against the Kremlin and cutting off military aid to Ukraine. It also wants to introduce compulsory military service and spend higher on defence.

The AfD, and Weidel, have long been critical of the European Union, and have said Germany should exit the bloc, which the party believes should be shrunken down to a free trade zone.

Elsewhere, it wants to pull Germany out of its international climate pacts, reinstate nuclear energy and rebuild the Nord Stream pipeline to import Russian gas.

Robert Habeck (The Greens)

The Green party has been polling between third place — tied with the SPD — and fourth place. Robert Habeck, the former vice chancellor, is in second place as preferred leader for the country — on 24% — according to the latest surveys.

The Greens, similar to the SPD, want to introduce a special debt-finance public fund to modernise Germany's infrastructure and transition the country to net-zero. It has also suggested reforming the debt brake in order to promote more investment.

The party has backed off on some of its hardline climate policies, and wants to build overhead power lines instead of more expensive underground cables. It also wants to lower electricity taxes to the EU and cover the cost for grid fees.

On migration, the Greens want to set up a panel of experts to advise on policy decisions and has opposed outsourcing of asylum procedures to third countries.

Habeck's party has seemingly abandoned its pacifism of the past and now supports spending 2% of GDP on the country's defence. The Greens also want to promote more joint arms procurement in the EU and support Ukraine joining NATO.

The party is pushing for reforms in the EU that replace unanimity with majority decisions and cut funding for members that undermine the rule of law. It also believes the EU should source its own financial resources.

Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW)

The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) — founded last year by Sahra Wagenknecht and others who split from the Left Party — originally enjoyed strong performances in both European and state German elections, but recently has been polling between 4% and 6%.

The party has called itself the "only peace party" in German parliament and says it rejects the current "arms build up" as well as the delivery of weapons to conflict zones, including Ukraine.

The BSW wants cheap energy, including from Russia. The party says it is opposed to sanctions against Russia which its leader Wagenknecht has described as "having nothing to do with the Ukraine war".

Its election manifesto proposes to take climate change seriously but, "not get lost in haphazard activism and burn billions of euros of taxpayers' money in the process". Similar to the CDU, the BSW wants to repeal the outgoing government's heating law.

Elsewhere, the BSW is proposing raising the minimum wage, promoting citizens' insurance over private and statutory health insurance, and reducing migration.

It advocates for a "cabinet of experts" who could advise on policy decisions.

Christian Lindner (FDP)

Scholz's former Finance Minister Christian Lindner's unceremonious firing following a bitter budget dispute effectively caused the ruling coalition to collapse. Since then, his pro-business FDP party has been consistently polling at 4%.

The fiscally conservative FDP is opposed to reforming the debt brake — a disagreement which led to his sacking. The party wants to reduce corporate tax to below 25% and cut VAT for restaurant food to 7%.

It aims to tighten rules for unemployment benefits and cut benefits to those who cannot prove they are actively looking for work.

It wants to postpone Germany's climate neutrality aims by five years as well as revive nuclear power plants and expand the domestic production of natural gas.

Lindner and his party want to shrink the European Commission and support majority voting for foreign and security issues for the bloc. The FDP has proposed redirecting funds from Germany's development aid to domestic interests.

On migration, the party has suggested taking authority for deportations away from Germany's states and to a federal level.

The party is in favour of sending long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine — a position Scholz has repeatedly rejected — and wants a German volunteer army.