Fighting irregular immigration and securing legal channels to enter Germany, fending off cyberattacks by foreign powers and shielding democratic institutions against all subterfuges, at home and abroad, are some of the challenges that the next German government will have to face. government, which will result from the early elections on 29 February.

This is what most analysts point out. But when the politicians themselves are asked, especially those who had shouldered government responsibilities in the last parliamentary term, many of them estimate that everything is overshadowed by the crisis in which the German economy is sinking. Major companies, such as the Volkswagen carmaker, have announced significant job cuts, while inflation continues to eat away at workers’ incomes.

Christian Democrat politician Marko Vanderwicz, the federal government’s representative for the East German states until 2021, points out to Deutsche Welle that “the biggest problem facing our country, at the moment, is that the economy is suffocating. This undermines our future. And the problem is that those who shape economic developments have now lost their trust in politics.”

“We still communicate by fax”

The main reasons for the economic stagnation are high energy costs, high wage costs, outdated infrastructure and stifling competition from China. And also, the lack of specialized human resources, but also the bureaucracy. In this last, the former head of the Greens, Omid Nuripour, points out, the country is still paying for the delays observed in the digitization of the administration and the economy.

“We have a double crisis, that is, a crisis due to the economic situation, but also a structural crisis,” the politician says to Deutsche Welle. “You see for example that health services still communicate by fax. This is indicative of the reforms and investments that have been left behind…”

Added to all this are the suggestions from outside, for example from Russia, in the energy supply and other critical infrastructures. “The most important thing is to protect these critical infrastructures, we have significant shortcomings in this area,” emphasizes Omid Nuripour.

The immigration challenge

On the agenda of the next German government are the unresolved issues in immigration policy, but also the question of how to deal with the rise of ethno-populism and the Far Right. The truth is that the number of asylum seekers and irregular immigrants has been limited recently. However, the European External Border Service (Frontex) estimates that, in the first nine months of 2024 alone, around 166,000 people attempted to enter EU territory illegally.

And while the federal government has already reintroduced controls at the country’s borders, municipalities and communities complain that they have reached their limits, as they are no longer able to welcome and sustain so many refugees and immigrants. This is also emphasized by Stefan Seidler, member of the Danish minority party (SSW) in the German Federal Parliament. “What I can say from my side,” he says, “is that the municipalities are facing a huge challenge, which is difficult to deal with. We need the support of the federal government…”

On this issue, however, the Christian Democrat politician Marko Vanderwicz disagrees. “In principle the numbers of new arrivals have decreased,” he says. “Beyond that, I think there is some exaggeration in the whole discussion. All the local politicians I know tell me that the current situation has clearly improved compared to 2014 and 2015. And yet, at the same time, everyone says they are raising a ‘white flag’.”

Edited by: Yiannis Papadimitriou