An election could take place in late January, he said. "We simply cannot afford to have a government without a majority in Germany for several months now, followed by an election campaign for several more months and then possibly several weeks of coalition ...

Germany’s leader is expected to lead the country with a minority government after the collapse of the coalition.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz claimed Christian Lindner had broken his trust and dismissed him as finance minister, paving the way for an early election.