Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Germany’s election would “not be decided by the owners of social media channels” in his annual New Year’s Eve address.
Reporting from Berlin
The annual New Year’s Eve speech by Germany’s chancellor is traditionally heavy on national unity, reflections on the past 12 months and calls for optimism.
While all those ingredients were present in this year’s televised address by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, he also included an oblique reference to a non-German who has taken a strong, some might say baffling, interest in the country’s politics: Elon Musk.
Mr. Scholz’s New Year’s Eve speech, which will probably be his last, comes amid unusual political turbulence in modern Germany and rising polarization in Europe. The tone of his address reflected the stakes for the country as it faces stalled economic growth, with the chancellor calling for “solidarity” while acknowledging that life had become more expensive for many.
The three-party coalition government that came to power in 2021 collapsed in November, and Mr. Scholz, a center-left Social Democrat, lost a confidence vote this month, triggering federal elections that will be held on Feb. 23.
As the German public prepares to go to the polls, Mr. Musk, a key adviser to President-elect Donald J. Trump, has spoken out on social media and in a newspaper opinion essay in favor of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, or AfD. His support of the group, which has neo-Nazi ties and is under surveillance by domestic intelligence for being extremist, has rattled lawmakers and prompted criticism from mainstream leaders across the political spectrum.
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