Germany is set to hold snap elections on February 23 after an agreement was reached among parties in the country’s fractured parliament on Tuesday, according to reports from public broadcaster ARD.

After the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s governing coalition, the balloting will be held on Feb. 23, about seven months before it had been scheduled.

The decision follows a budget fight that prompted Chancellor Olaf Scholz to fire his finance minister and announce a confidence vote that is widely expected to fail.

Friedrich Merz, the leader of the Christian democratic (CDU/CSU) opposition, is pushing for a confidence vote before Christmas.

Speaking in the Bundestag, Chancellor Olaf Scholz asked the opposition for help to pass several items of legislation before the February election, but the conservative CDU is reluctant.

German opposition leaders on Tuesday welcomed an expected confidence vote in the Bundestag on Dec. 16, following the collapse of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party coalition last week. View o

The Bundestag elections are scheduled for 23 February 2025, as reported by the dpa agency on Tuesday. German parties—the SPD, the Greens, and the opposition Christian Democrats—have agreed upon this date.

Under a plan agreed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the opposition, Europe’s largest economy is now headed toward early elections in February.