Chancellor Olaf Scholz requested the vote of confidence in just two sentences

Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has submitted a request to the Bundestag for a vote on the vote of confidence. “I would like to clear the way for early federal elections,” Scholz explained on

Scholz had announced early elections after the break of the traffic light coalition made up of the SPD, Greens and FDP. To do this, he uses the question of trust in Article 68 of the Basic Law. The Chancellor kept the request for a vote short. It reads: “Dear President of the Bundestag, in accordance with Article 68 of the Basic Law, I submit a motion to express confidence in me. I intend to make a statement on this before the vote on Monday, December 16, 2024.”

The letter signed by Scholz was then delivered to the office of Bundestag President Bärbel Bas (SPD) by an employee of the Federal Chancellery, said government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit.

The vote of confidence originally served to give a chancellor an instrument to ensure his majority in parliament. However, it has already been used several times in the past to force new elections.

In order for this to also be the case for Scholz, he is unlikely to receive a majority of confidence in him in the vote in the Bundestag scheduled for Monday afternoon. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier can then decide within 21 days whether to dissolve the Bundestag. If he agrees, new elections to the Bundestag must be scheduled within 60 days. The election date for February 23rd was agreed upon with Steinmeier in advance.

So far, the question of trust has occurred five times in the history of the Federal Republic: It was raised by Chancellors Willy Brandt (SPD, 1972), Helmut Schmidt (SPD, 1982), Helmut Kohl (CDU, 1982) and Gerhard Schröder (SPD, 2001 and 2005). The confidence votes resulted in new elections three times.