Now that the votes are cast, the real work in Berlin can begin. While reconstituting parliament is relatively easy and must be done in the next three weeks, no party is expected to get enough votes to govern alone and outright. That means Germany is likely headed for a coalition government — and the process … Read more
Germans voted for a change of leadership on Sunday, handing the most votes in a parliamentary election to centrist conservatives, with the far right in second, and rebuking the nation’s left-leaning government for its handling of the economy and immigration. Early returns and exit polls almost certainly mean the country’s next chancellor will be Friedrich … Read more
Germany’s next government will almost certainly be a coalition of multiple political parties, to form a majority in Parliament. But one party will almost certainly be excluded from that coalition, no matter how well it ultimately performs: the hard-right Alternative for Germany, or AfD. While early exit polls on Sunday showed the AfD in second … Read more
Friedrich Merz, the man favored by early exit polls to be Germany’s next chancellor after elections on Sunday, is a conservative businessman who has never been a minister and was forced out of government years ago in a power struggle with Angela Merkel. The leader of the conservative Christian Democratic Union, Mr. Merz earned his … Read more
Interference by Trump administration officials in the German campaign put off some left-leaning voters but was welcomed by others supporting the far-right Alternative for Germany, or AfD, according to a smattering of interviews at polling stations. Several voters in the eastern city of Dresden took note of a speech by Vice President JD Vance at … Read more
Germans are voting on Sunday in a rare snap election that has taken on outsize importance as the new Trump administration threatens European countries with tariffs, cuts them out of negotiations over Ukraine and embraces an authoritarian Russia. The election for Parliament was called after Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s unpopular and long-troubled three-party government collapsed in … Read more
Ukraine and the United States remain locked in difficult negotiations over a deal to trade Ukraine’s natural resources for American aid, Ukrainian officials said Sunday morning, as Washington maintains pressure on Kyiv to sign an agreement quickly. The timing of the talks, which stretched late into Saturday night, according to two Ukrainian officials briefed on … Read more
Pope Francis spent a restful night at the Rome hospital where he has been in critical condition as he undergoes treatment for pneumonia and a complex infection, the Vatican said Sunday morning. Beyond the brief text — “The night passed quietly, the Pope rested” — the Vatican did not provide further details, as concerns mounted … Read more
Andrew Rackstraw has lived in Marlow, a small, wealthy town on the River Thames about 30 miles west of London, for nearly three decades. Its main streets are dotted with luxury boutiques, high-end cafes and stores like Saddle Safari, Mr. Rackstraw’s bike shop. With a population of about 14,000, Marlow also has a plush cinema … Read more
Just a few minutes’ walk from a metro station in the northeast corner of Vienna, you might think that you were in Texas: A drilling rig more than 130 feet high looms over open land. Instead of oil, though, the wells will pump close to 1.7 million gallons a day of hot water from deep … Read more