Why was it difficult for Angela Merkel to form a government after the 2017 election?

Following the September 2017 federal election, Angela Merkel faced significant difficulty forming a government because her conservative alliance, the CDU-CSU, fell well short of a parliamentary majority.1

The political landscape had become increasingly fragmented, with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) surging to capture nearly 13 percent of the vote, while the Social Democratic Party (SPD)—Merkel’s partner in the previous grand coalition—suffered its worst electoral showing in 70 years.1

The formation process was further complicated by the following factors:

• Refusal to Rejoin: SPD leader Martin Schulz initially declared that his party would not rejoin a coalition with Merkel, forcing her to seek other partners.1
• Collapsed Negotiations: Merkel attempted to form a coalition with other parties, but these talks with the Free Democratic Party (FDP) collapsed in November 2017.1
• Resolution: Faced with the possibility of fresh elections, the SPD eventually reversed its position, leading to months of additional negotiations that ultimately resulted in the formation of another grand coalition.1