The three remaining ministers of the Free Democrats resigned in response, leading to the downfall of the government coalition. Scholz is expected to lead the country with a minority government, but the opposition is calling for an immediate no-confidence vote. Tobias Schwarz / AFP - Getty Images fileScholz’s left-leaning Social Democrats will now effectively lead a minority government with the remaining coalition partner, the environmentalist Greens. Lindner’s pro-business Free Democrats had rejected tax increases or changes to Germany’s strict self-imposed limits on running up debt. Scholz’s Social Democrats and the Greens wanted to see major state investment and rejected the Free Democrats’ proposals to cut welfare programs.

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Persons: Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Christian Lindner, Scholz, Volker Wissing, Lindner, Frank, Walter Steinmeier, ” Scholz, Olaf Scholz, Tobias Schwarz, Friedrich Merz, Merz, “, ”, ” Merz, Achim Wambach, Donald Trump Organizations: Free Democrats, German Finance, AFP, Getty, Social Democrats, Greens, Christian Democrats, German Bundestag, Scholz’s Social Democrats, Leibniz Center for European Economic Research Locations: Berlin, German, Germany, “, Europe