Less than two years into his chancellorship, Friedrich Merz finds himself measured against the long shadow of Angela Merkel — and found wanting by nearly half his countrymen. A YouGov poll commissioned by DPA reveals that 48 percent of Germans believe the former 16-year chancellor would better navigate the nation's compounding crises than her CDU successor, who has already reached record-low approval ratings. The verdict is not merely a personal rebuke but a reflection of a deeper unease: Germany is a country straining under the weight of economic stagnation, demographic pressure, energy costs
Nearly half of Germans prefer Merkel over Merz to handle nation's challenges
Nearly half of Germans believe his predecessor would handle their problems better
Mark
So nearly half of Germans want Merkel back. That's a striking number. What does it actually tell us?
Mimi
It tells us people are anxious about the present and nostalgic for the past. Merz has been in office less than eighteen months and is already at record lows. Merkel governed for sixteen years—long enough that people remember stability, even if they disagreed with her policies.
Luke
But we should be careful here. The poll doesn't ask whether people want Merkel to actually return. It asks a hypothetical: who would handle challenges better? That's different from electoral preference.
Mimi
True. But the gap is real. Only 8 percent favor Merz over Merkel. That's a crushing margin.
Mark
What's actually driving the discontent? Is it one thing or many?
Mimi
Many. The economy is stagnant. Energy prices are high. The aging population is straining the welfare system. Ukraine is still burning. Merz inherited a difficult hand.
Luke
And he's trying to reform the care system in the middle of it, which is politically expensive. The welfare groups are already mobilizing against him.
Mark
So the poll is less about Merkel and more about Merz's approval rating?
Mimi
Exactly. It's a referendum on his first year. And he's failing it.
Luke
Though we should note: the poll doesn't measure whether people actually want different policies. It measures whether they think Merkel would do better. That's a feeling, not a platform.
Mark
What happens next?
Mimi
He keeps working. The care reform still has to pass the Bundestag. He's trying to show strength on Ukraine. But the clock is ticking.
Luke
And the AfD is rising in the east, which complicates everything—immigration, migration, the whole economic convergence question. Merz doesn't have easy answers there either.
Le Pouls
- A striking poll places Merz in an almost untenable position — only 8 percent of Germans consider him more capable than Merkel, his own party predecessor, while nearly half openly wish she were still in charge.
- The pressures bearing down on Merz are not abstract: a stalled economy, elevated energy prices, an aging population straining the welfare state, immigration tensions, and Germany's deepening entanglement in the Ukraine war all demand simultaneous answers.
- Merz traveled unannounced to Kyiv on the same day the poll circulated, announcing fresh military aid and bringing top business leaders — a deliberate show of resolve that nonetheless could not fully escape the shadow of the survey's findings.
- At home, a divisive care-system reform — raising surcharges for childless workers and expanding care workers' responsibilities — has drawn fierce opposition from 14 welfare groups and unions who warn it endangers both staffing safety and adequate care.
- Germany's environment minister is sounding urgent warnings about water scarcity, framing it as a structural civilizational challenge that 100 billion euros in infrastructure investment may not alone resolve.
- Even a rare piece of good news — Deutsche Bahn making its popular family rail ticket permanent — carries a cautionary undertone, as the CEO admits the aging rail network won't meaningfully improve for at least a decade, an unintentional mirror of Merz's broader predicament.
Less than two years into his chancellorship, Friedrich Merz finds himself measured against the long shadow of Angela Merkel — and found wanting by nearly half his countrymen. A YouGov poll commissioned by DPA reveals that 48 percent of Germans believe the former 16-year chancellor would better navigate the nation's compounding crises than her CDU successor, who has already reached record-low approval ratings. The verdict is not merely a personal rebuke but a reflection of a deeper unease: Germany is a country straining under the weight of economic stagnation, demographic pressure, energy costs, and an unresolved war on Europe's eastern edge, and its citizens are searching, perhaps nostalgically, for steadier hands.
A new YouGov poll commissioned by DPA has handed Friedrich Merz an uncomfortable political verdict: 48 percent of Germans believe Angela Merkel would handle the country's current challenges better than he can. Only 8 percent favor Merz over his predecessor, while 29 percent consider them equally capable. The finding stings not only because of its scale, but because Merz and Merkel belong to the same party — the center-right CDU — and have long been rivals within it. Merkel governed for 16 years; Merz has been in office since May 2025 and has already accumulated record-low approval ratings.
The challenges confronting him are substantial and interlocking. Germany's economy has stalled, energy prices remain high, and an aging population is placing mounting strain on the social welfare system. Immigration continues to generate political friction, and Russia's war in Ukraine — now entering its fifth winter — demands both military resources and diplomatic attention. These are not problems with quick solutions.
On the day the poll results circulated, Merz made an unannounced visit to Kyiv alongside Economy Minister Katherina Reiche and senior German business figures, announcing new military aid for Ukraine. It was a deliberate signal of commitment, but it landed against a backdrop of deepening public doubt about his leadership.
Back in Berlin, the government is pushing a contentious care-system reform through the Bundestag. The plan would raise long-term care insurance surcharges for childless workers, increase costs for high earners, and expand care workers' responsibilities. A coalition of 14 welfare organizations and unions has pushed back sharply, warning the cuts endanger both staffing safety and the quality of care, and calling instead for wealth and inheritance taxes to fill the budget gap.
Germany's environment minister, meanwhile, is warning that the country can no longer take water for granted. Low levels on the Rhine and Lake Constance have exposed vulnerabilities in both ecology and the economy. The government has committed 100 billion euros to water infrastructure, but the minister's language suggests the problem is structural — deeper than any single investment can address.
In a lighter register, Deutsche Bahn announced it will make its family rail ticket permanent starting in November, a 99.99-euro roundtrip deal for up to five people that drew 100,000 more families to the rails this summer. Yet even here, CEO Evelyn Palla acknowledged that the aging rail network won't see meaningful improvement for at least a decade. It is, perhaps unintentionally, a fitting metaphor for Merz's larger situation: the problems are real, the solutions are long, and public patience is running short.
A new survey has delivered an uncomfortable verdict for Friedrich Merz: nearly half of all Germans believe his predecessor, Angela Merkel, would handle the country's mounting problems better than he can. The YouGov poll, commissioned by the German news agency DPA, found that 48 percent of respondents favor Merkel over the current chancellor. Only 8 percent view Merkel less favorably than Merz, while 29 percent say the two would be equally capable. The remaining 15 percent either declined to answer or said they were unsure.
Merz took office in May 2025, less than a year and a half ago, and has already accumulated record-low approval ratings. The irony cuts deeper because both men belong to the same party—the center-right Christian Democratic Union—and have long been political rivals within it. Merkel, who governed for 16 years until 2021, remains a towering figure in German politics, and the public's nostalgia for her leadership reflects genuine anxiety about the present moment.
The challenges facing Merz are substantial and interconnected. Germany's economy has stalled. Energy prices remain elevated. The country's aging population means fewer working-age people supporting an expanding social welfare system. Immigration continues to fuel political tension. And abroad, Russia's invasion of Ukraine enters its fifth winter, demanding both military support and diplomatic attention. These are not problems that yield to simple solutions or quick wins.
The timing of the poll is notable. On the same day the survey results circulated, Merz made an unannounced visit to Kyiv, bringing Economy Minister Katherina Reiche and other leading German business figures with him. He announced new military aid for Ukraine and other initiatives meant to signal German commitment as the war grinds into another winter. It was a show of resolve, but it came against the backdrop of public doubt about his overall fitness for the job.
Back home, the government is moving forward with a contentious reform of Germany's care system—a sector buckling under demographic pressure. The plan would require childless workers to pay higher surcharges for long-term care insurance and would increase costs for high-income earners. Care workers would take on additional responsibilities. A coalition of 14 welfare groups and unions has pushed back hard, warning that the cuts threaten both adequate care and safe staffing levels. They are calling instead for wealth and inheritance taxes to close the budget gap. The government approved the bill in late September, but it still must pass the Bundestag.
Meanwhile, Germany's environment minister is sounding alarms about water. Carsten Schneider told a Cologne newspaper that the era when Germans could take water for granted has ended. Low water levels on the Rhine and Lake Constance have exposed vulnerabilities in both the natural environment and the economy. Schneider is pushing for a complete overhaul of water policy, including upgrades to technical infrastructure to retain water in the landscape. The government has already committed 100 billion euros to state and municipal authorities for water infrastructure improvements, but Schneider's language suggests the problem runs deeper than money alone can fix.
On a lighter note, Deutsche Bahn announced it will make its "Family Ticket" permanent starting in November. The deal—99.99 euros for a roundtrip for up to five people including seat reservations on high-speed trains—drew 100,000 more families to the rails this summer than the previous year. But CEO Evelyn Palla acknowledged that the rail system itself remains a work in progress. Much of the infrastructure is aging and prone to breakdown. Renovations will take at least a decade, she said, and passengers won't see meaningful improvements until a large portion of the equipment has been replaced. It is a metaphor, perhaps unintentionally, for Merz's larger predicament: the problems are real, the solutions are long-term, and the public's patience is wearing thin.
Citations marquantes
Social cohesion is a prerequisite for democratic stability— Coalition of 14 welfare groups and unions opposing care system cuts
The days when we in Germany didn't have to worry about water are definitely over. Germany needs a different approach to water— Environment Minister Carsten Schneider
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