As Scholz Struggles, the German Green Party Gains Ground
Wikicommons
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has given Germany’s political landscape a tremendous shake. New Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s honeymoon period in office ended before it even began. Scholz has come under tremendous pressure from both domestic political adversaries and foreign officials, notably including Ukraine’s ambassador to Berlin, for failing to increase German support of the Ukrainian military quickly enough. His ideologically diverse coalition government, uniting the Social Democratic Party, Free Democratic Party, and Green Party, has had to roll with the punches, but out of the morass, the Green Party has found itself in an increasingly comfortable position.
Green Party members occupy two of the most important positions in the present German government. Annalena Baerbock, the Greens’ chancellor candidate during the 2021 elections, is the foreign minister, while Robert Habeck, the former party co-leader along with Baerbock, is the vice chancellor and minister for economics and climate. Both have been front and center in recent months, and have been rewarded with high levels of popularity. Habeck is currently the most popular politician in Germany, with 52.3% of the public approving of his job performance, while Baerbock follows at 48.6%.
Habeck has had a particularly interesting rise to the forefront of German politics. He spent much of the 1990s as a graduate student studying literature, receiving a doctorate from the University of Hamburg in 2000. While in graduate school he worked as a translator along with his wife, translating English poetry into Germany, for which he received an award, and he has since published a handful of novels.
Perhaps as a result of his background, Habeck has emerged as one of the best communicators in German politics. The official Twitter account of the German Ministry of the Economy and Climate Protection regularly posts videos of Habeck explaining his policy decisions. The videos are bare-boned, consisting solely of Habeck speaking directly into the camera as he lays out his thought process in its entirety.
Armin Laschet, former leader and chancellor candidate of the conservative Christian Democratic Union, recognized the effectiveness of Habeck’s communication style in a Tweet posted on April 1st. Commenting on a clip from a political talk show, where Habeck consistently refused to let other participants cut him off, the tweet read, “If the style of Robert Habeck becomes political culture in Germany, weighing pros and cons, reflecting, against populist and morally arrogant simple solutions, then we really are on the cusp of an epochal change. It would be good for the country.” The compliment, which crossed political dividing lines, clearly demonstrates that Habeck’s popularity cannot simply be ascribed to his active role in the Ukraine crisis. Instead, it points to a perception of Habeck as trustworthy and willing to thwart political norms.
Laschet’s use of the phrase “epochal shift” was not hyperbole. Instead, he was referencing Scholz’ announcement of a shift in German policy to become much more involved militarily with the world. In February, Scholz called for a Zeitenwende, or “epochal shift,” in a speech to the German Bundestag in February regarding the grounds upon which German foreign policy is based. The central tenets of the speech were an increase in German defense spending to 2% of GDP per annum, along with a one-time €100 billion investment in the military to be spent over the next few years. This funding would make Germany one of the largest militaries in the world, a sharp break from previous policy, which largely neglected the military as a residual consequence of the Second World War.
Recent German policy has been based on the phrase Handel durch Wandel, or change through trade. In practice, the theoretical ideals of attempting to change local political conditions through economic engagement often fell flat. Many German firms have taken large positions in countries, such as Russia or China, where the domestic political conditions are appalling. German auto manufacturer Volkswagen, one of the world’s largest, has come under fire in recent years for operating a factory in the Chinese region Xinjiang, the location of Uyghur re-education camps.
Although Scholz has recently gained a bit more fire in his defense of German policy, emphatically rebuking pacifist protestors at a recent rally in Düsseldorf, he remains on the back foot. His difficulty in asserting himself has allowed Habeck and Baerbock to be seen as change-makers who advocate for a more muscular and values-based German foreign policy. Baerbock opposed the Nordstream 2 pipeline before it was politically advantageous to take that position in Berlin, while Habeck was the first German policymaker to visit Washington after Scholz’ Zeitenwende pronouncement.
Unlike much of recent German foreign policy, the Greens espouse a clear-eyed outlook on the world. The Greens have enunciated a stronger position on China, discounting the “change through trade” ethos. Their language is much more hawkish than the Berlin foreign policy establishment, concerning Chinese diplomats. They also advocated a stricter stance towards Russia prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
As written here before, the Green Party represents a breath of fresh air for German politics. They are a party with principles at a time when the two traditional German parties, the SPD and CDU, have often seemed to lack answers. The Greens thwart Germany’s political norms. Habeck communicates as very few politicians do, and Baerbock is the first woman to ever serve as foreign minister. Agriculture Minister Cem Özdemir is also the first German of Turkish descent appointed to a cabinet position, a landmark for a country with a sizable, and visible, Turkish minority.
Germany must wait another four and a half years before it heads back to the polls. The Green Party need not wait that long to exert their influence in pushing Germany into the future. The very presence of an environmental party in the German coalition government provides hope for an accelerated German transition to sustainable energy and energy independence, while their principled foreign policy breathes life into the defense of democracy against those who would see it fall.
Whether the Greens can make the jump up the pecking order remains to be seen. For now, they are the third most powerful party in Germany, and much will happen before September 2026. Should they stick to their principles, they will be an example to emulate throughout the West and help to jolt awake the many policymakers who are asleep at the wheel. Germans deserve politicians they can trust. The Greens can provide that.