BERLIN (Reuters) – A majority of Germans are dissatisfied with the leadership of Chancellor Olaf Scholz for the first time since he took office in 2021, a survey showed on Friday, capping off a week of tension within his three-party coalition over spending.
Fifty-one percent of respondents to a survey conducted on behalf of public broadcaster ZDF said they were not happy with the chancellor’s work.
Only 43% of respondents said they were satisfied with Scholz’s work at the helm of a coalition between his centre-left SPD, the liberal FDP and the Greens, while 6% were undecided.
On Wednesday, Scholz’s government failed to pass a law offering corporate tax relief worth billions of euros after it was vetoed by the Greens’ family minister, who is seeking billions of euros in additional money for child benefits.
Despite the survey’s findings, Scholz remains the second most popular politician in Germany behind defence minister Boris Pistorius, who has been in pole position for months.
(Writing by Friederike Heine, Editing by Rachel More)
