German election on track after parliament vote

By Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Gerhard Schroederengineered his own defeat in a parliamentary vote of confidenceon Friday in a bid to force elections he is gambling willreturn him to power with a new mandate for reform.

Schroeder resorted to the vote after his Social DemocraticParty (SPD), facing criticism over unemployment and social andeconomic reform plans, suffered stinging regional poll defeats.

But critics who see Schroeder’s confidence vote as apolitical sham said they would ask the courts to block anyearly elections, which opinion polls suggest the SPD would loseto the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

The 601-strong Bundestag lower house voted 296-151 againstthe government, with 148 abstentions, Speaker Wolfgang Thierseannounced.

Schroeder had called on parliament, in a speech broadcaston half a dozen German television stations, to open the way fornew elections, saying his government needed a mandate tocontinue its economic reform drive. He said he lacked necessarysupport in parliament and faced opposition even in his ownparty.

“If we are to continue with this agenda, legitimisationthrough new elections is needed,” a grim Schroeder said. “Weneed clarity. That is why I am putting the motion ofconfidence.”

Schoeder’s speech was followed by a lively debate of overan hour which underscored the fact that for the leading partiesthe election campaign has already begun.

But for the vote to take place, a number of constitutionalhurdles still need to be cleared.

German President Horst Koehler, the only person with theright to dissolve parliament, must now decide whether theconfidence vote defeat conforms with the constitution as aprelude to elections. He has 21 days to make his view known.

Even if he does say yes, Germany’s Constitutional Court inKarlsruhe is likely to have the final say. Greens party memberWerner Schulz, announced after the confidence vote he wouldfile a suit if Koehler ratifies the early election plan.

“Mr. Chancellor, what is occurring here is an absurdity.This is not a real confidence vote,” Schulz told parliamentbefore the vote. “The 1968 generation is hollowing out Article68,” he added, in reference to the section of the constitutionthat lays out the ground rules for a vote of confidence.

SCHROEDER TRAILS

Schroeder, chancellor for the past 7 years, shocked thenation on May 22 when he announced plans to bring the federalelection forward by a full year, following defeat in the SPDheartland of North Rhine-Westphalia.

If the election goes ahead in Europe’s biggest economy, hefaces a daunting challenge in the face of opinion polls thatput his SPD 17-21 points behind Merkel’s conservatives.

Voter discontent stems from record high unemployment andgovernment pro-market reforms critics say shake at the “socialmarket economy,” with its generous welfare net, that has beenone of the pillars of German post-war democracy.

Koehler will be taking his decision on whether to dissolveparliament in the knowledge that an overwhelming majority ofGermans, the country’s main parties and financial marketssupport Schroeder’s early election plan.

There is also a precedent. In 1982 former Chancellor HelmutKohl deliberately lost a confidence vote to bolster hisparliamentary majority — a move upheld by Germany’sConstitutional Court albeit with reservations.

“I am assuming the path chosen by Schroeder will stand upto examination by the President and Karlsruhe,” legal expertHans Herbert von Arnim told Reuters.