Alleged paper shortage expected to save German S government from new elections

Published 9 November 2024 at 17.39

Foreign. Germany faces a potential crisis during a possible new election – due to a lack of paper required to print ballots, writes Bild.

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Ruth Brand, chairwoman of the German electoral commission, recently warned in a TV spot that an election earlier than March would bring “incalculable risks” of ballots not being produced on time.

She said that the in today's world, “it's a big challenge to actually get paper and carry out the orders at the printer”.

After the coalition government under Olaf Scholz collapsed this week, he was pressured to consider a snap election as early as January.

The opposition, above all the CDU, is critical of the election authority's claim that it lacks the capacity to hold elections at the moment.

– The statements made by the federal election commissioner are scandalous and embarrassing. A country like Germany must be able to hold elections within 60 days, says CDU general secretary Carsten Linnemann to the newspaper Bild.

Thorsten Frei from the CDU added:

– We must be careful not to making a mockery of ourselves internationally with a debate at this level.

Frei referred to France which managed to hold elections at short notice this summer.

Scholz, for his part, benefits from the lack of paper because he wants to secure support for his bills before a new election takes place.