How a German chancellor can be removed — what that means for Friedrich Merz
Resignation, a constructive vote of no confidence or a failed confidence motion are the only real paths to remove a German chancellor — each difficult in practice.
Friedrich Merz faces mounting political pressure in Berlin, but removing a German chancellor is complicated by constitutional safeguards. As of 18 September 2026, the options are limited: voluntary resignation, a constructive vote of no confidence, or a confidence vote that can open the door to early elections.
Three constitutional routes, each difficult
The simplest outcome would be a resignation: the chancellor can step down at any time for personal or political reasons. History shows that a party and coalition can survive such a change — in May 1974, Chancellor Willy Brandt resigned after a spy was discovered close to his office, and ten days later Helmut Schmidt was elected chancellor by the Bundestag. That transition required an absolute majority of all deputies, often called the "chancellor majority."
The second mechanism is the constructive vote of no confidence. The Bundestag cannot merely remove a chancellor; it must simultaneously elect a successor. The best-known example is 1982, when Helmut Schmidt lost the backing of the FDP and the Bundestag elected Helmut Kohl as his replacement. For Merz today this path looks unlikely: coalition partners CDU/CSU and SPD appear disinclined to break the government, and no strong rival candidate has emerged.
The third route involves a confidence vote initiated by the chancellor. A chancellor may seek a vote of confidence to consolidate support or test the parliament. If the chancellor loses that vote, they can ask the federal president to dissolve the Bundestag and call new elections. The president is not legally bound to agree, but historically such requests have often led to early polls. Gerhard Schröder used this instrument in November 2001 to link support for German troop deployment in Afghanistan to a confidence vote.
Current indicators add context: a DeutschlandTrend poll by Infratest Dimap for ARD in early September found only 13 percent saying Merz was doing a good job, and the conservative bloc suffered a heavy setback in the recent Saxony-Anhalt state election when Alternative for Germany (AfD) won. The AfD is classified by Germany's domestic intelligence service as a proven right‑wing extremist group in that state. Despite these setbacks, Merz has indicated he sees no reason to trigger a confidence vote, and parliamentary defections large enough to enable a constructive no-confidence appear improbable.
That makes an abrupt change of chancellor unlikely in the immediate term, but the combination of weak public approval and electoral losses means the political scene in Berlin remains volatile and further shifts cannot be ruled out.
Photo: press material from the event
