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Global Elections & Government Transitions Hub

Our Global Elections & Government Transitions Hub keeps you up-to-date on the key elections taking place around the globe and provides insights into what the resulting government transitions mean for your business. 
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GermanyGermany

million

Population

million

Registered to vote

% (2025)

Voter turnout

Germany held parliamentary elections on 23 February 2025.

The opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) led by Friedrich Merz and its sister party the Christian Social Union (CSU) have won the general election with 28.5% of the vote.

The ruling Social Democratic Party led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz came third with 16.4% of the vote while the Alternative for Germany came second with 20.8%.

The CDU and CSU will need to form a coalition government as they won a total of 208 seats in the new parliament (Bundestag), short of the 316 seats needed for a majority. 

In November 2024, a snap election was announced after the collapse of the coalition government led by Chancellor Scholz. In a statement to government, the Chancellor announced that parliament would be holding a vote of confidence on 16 December 2024. This allowed for new elections to take place in February.

Germany is a federal parliamentary republic with a Chancellor who is the head of government, and a President who is the head of state and whose main responsibilities are representative. 

The country consists of 16 states (Länder) which each have their own constitution and are largely autonomous regarding their internal organisation.

The 630 members of parliament serve four-year terms. 

Germany has a population of 84.4 million and around 61 million registered voters. Provisional results show election turnout in the 2025 election was 83%.

23 Feb 2025

Election Date

Our firm capability

The changing political landscape is a reality. With our in-depth understanding of local laws and strong relationships with government and regulatory bodies, we are your right partner to navigate the complex legal and policy frameworks.

We operate at the intersection of business and policy

Our combination of industry, regulatory, and legal knowledge provides unparalleled support to both public and private companies in highly regulated industries. We enable them to effectively steer and leverage government policies and regulations, by proactively identifying emerging risks and opportunities and by providing them with robust advocacy strategies that integrate legal and policy arguments. 

Our regulatory lawyers are recognized leaders in their fields including, inter alia: 

  • Public commercial and Municipal law
  • Public procurement, state aid and subsidy law
  • Constitutional and economic administrative law
  • Sanctions and export control
  • Foreign investment control
  • Foreign trade law
  • Product regulatory
  • Environmental and planning law
  • ESG

Furthermore, we are regular advisors of federal and state ministries, local authorities, associations, and other public sector institutions. We are involved in the development or extension of legislation at state, federal and EU level as well as in the preparation of expert opinions and statements on legislative procedures, advising on political processes and decision-making. 

Representative matters include:

  • Advising Honeywell International Inc. on a major industrial site remediation case and negotiation of a public-law contract with the authority and other environmental and public law-related issues.
  • Advising STEAG GmbH on the approval of the construction of a gas- and steam power plant (GuD), in particular the scope of the EIA examination, water law issues and requirements of the BImSchG.
  • Advising 3M Deutschland GmbH on construction, planning and environmental law in connection with the development and expansion of a chemical park.
  • Advising Helsing on regulatory matters vis-à-vis various government branches
  • Advising multiple parties in negotiations with the German Ministry of Economics on FDI mitigation agreements
  • Advising Stadtwerke Velbert GmbH on the water concession procedure of Velbert, removal of the old concessionaire Gelsenwasser from the ownership and establishing a joint venture with Gelsenwasser.
  • Advising Autobahn Tank & Rast GmbH on public law (e.g. constitutional, highway, commercial, gaming, public procurement, environmental and planning law) and on project development.
  • Advising Baxter Germany on public procurement law and related competition law issues regarding various public tenders of German sick funds for supply/rebate contracts.
  • Advising FMS Wertmanagement (FMW WM) on public institution and budget law, corporate governance as well as advice on public procurement and EU state aid law in relation with the structuring and implementation of the (re)acquisition of securities, incl. policy advice/lobbying
  • Advising State of NRW on public procurement and EU state aid law in connection with the acquisition of a federal government stake in Flughafen Köln/Bonn GmbH.
  • Advising the German “Glücksspielkollegium” (coordinating body of the 16 German Federal States) and the gambling supervisory authorities of all 16 German states on the development of a model regulation for online gambling (virtual slot machines, online poker and online casino games) in accordance with the State Treaty on Gaming 2021

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