German SPD backs coalition talks - RTRS

Reuters reports the weekend’s update from the German political environment, citing that Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD) voted on Sunday to begin formal coalition talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives, in an effort to take out the German economy from the political standoff seen over the last months.

Key Details:

“SPD delegates voted 362 to 279, with one abstention, to press ahead with negotiations. The center-left party’s leaders had agreed on a preliminary coalition blueprint with Merkel’s conservative bloc earlier this month.

A recount was held after an initial show of hands was too close to call for the SPD official in charge of the count and the result was slightly narrower than most analysts expected.”

SPD leader Martin Schulz spoke to Phoenix television after the vote in Bonn, “We are of course all relieved. The coalition talks are going to be just as hard as the exploratory talks. We will talk to conservatives in the coming days and agree on a time frame. Then I hope that we will start negotiations soon.”