RevUE of the JMCM and the CCGES round table proposed by Marc-Antoine Corneau

« Entre Zeitenwende et Révolution : Analyse et résultats des élections allemandes », march 25, 2025 organized by Johanna Daum (Université de Montréal) and Laurent Borzillo (École nationale d’administration publique).

On Tuesday, March 25, 2025, a virtual roundtable was held to discuss the most recent federal elections in Germany. Several guests were in attendance, and the discussion was moderated by Denis Dumas, a specialist in German philosophy at the University of Ottawa.

Among the invited speakers were Susanne Aschi-Glesius, Consul General of Germany in Montreal; Karim Fertikh from Sciences Po Strasbourg and the Interdisciplinary Center for Studies and Research on Germany (CIERA); Marie Krpata from the Committee for the Study of Franco-German Relations (CERFA) at the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI); Daniel Stockemer from the University of Ottawa and Konrad Adenauer Chair in Empirical Democracy Studies; and Christian Leuprecht, Director of the Institute of Intergovernmental Relations at Queen’s University School of Political Studies.

The discussion was divided into two main parts. First, an analysis of the election results in Germany opened the conversation. Then, the debate shifted toward international and European defense issues facing Germany—particularly in light of the war in Ukraine and the election of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Analysis of the Election Results

Denis Dumas began by outlining the key takeaways from the election. The results were marked by the victory of the Christian Democratic parties CDU and CSU and their leader Friedrich Merz, who secured 28.6% of the vote. The strong performance of the far-right AfD also drew attention, with the party garnering 20.8% of the vote.

The Consul General of Germany in Montreal then highlighted several key aspects of the vote: significant polarization—especially among youth—, the rise of the far right, and a growing divide between East and West Germany. However, Karim Fertikh clarified that young voters supported the AfD in roughly the same proportion as other age groups. He also noted that, although the far-right surge was more prominent in the West, it was also evident in the East.

International Defense Challenges

Since the Russian invasion in 2022, the issue of European defense has become more pressing. The experts agreed that defense and military matters will remain, if not become even more, of a priority during this legislative term. They emphasized that this would be a key criterion for assessing the success or failure of the new government.

Speakers also stressed that Germany will need to work closely with France and other European countries to improve both national and European defense strategies. Recent comments made by the American president—particularly regarding the war in Ukraine—have cast doubt on the reliability of U.S. solidarity within NATO.

In short, the analysis of the most recent German federal elections led to an in-depth discussion of the challenges the Christian Democratic parties will face during their term: security and defense, as well as the growing prominence of identity politics on the national stage, driven in large part by the far right.

Marc-Antoine Corneau.