Volkswacht Bodensee - Scholz's party to name him as top candidate for snap polls

The way has been cleared for Scholz to become the SPD's chancellor candidate after his popular defence minister, Boris Pistorius, last week ruled himself out of the race.

The elections are to be held seven months earlier than scheduled after the collapse at the start of November of Scholz's coalition with the Greens and Free Democrats (FDP).

The SPD leadership will on Monday meet to formally announce that Scholz, 66, is to take the helm of the party's election campaign and urge members to close ranks behind him.

But it is a risky gamble for Germany's oldest political party, which is languishing at around 15 percent in opinion polls.

Scholz is the "face" of a failed government marked by perpetual disputes, according to news magazine Der Spiegel.

He is "probably the weakest, most unsuitable candidate for the chancellorship that the SPD has ever put forward", it said.

The main opposition conservatives, comprised of the CDU and CSU parties, are way ahead with 33 percent in opinion surveys, while the resurgent far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is on 18 percent.

- 'Peace chancellor' -

But even with the odds stacked against him, the man nicknamed "Scholzomat" because of his uninspiring style of public speaking appears convinced he can once again lead his party to victory.

Scholz has pointed out that he defied predictions to triumph at Germany's last elections in 2021, even though he greatly benefited from divisions within the conservative opposition.

In a speech on Friday, Scholz was already courting voters by calling for "prudence" in Germany's approach to military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

While Germany is Kyiv's second-biggest military backer, Scholz has refused to send long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine, fearing they could escalate the conflict.

According to a recent survey by public broadcaster ARD, 61 percent of Germans support that decision.

Scholz also held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this month, leading the opposition to accuse him of electioneering tactics by seeking to present himself as the "peace chancellor".

SPD general secretary Matthias Miersch on Sunday called on the SPD to "stand united behind Scholz", acknowledging that "the debates of the last few weeks have certainly not helped" the party.

- Campaign mode -

Several senior party members had spoken out in favour of Pistorius, saying that Scholz was too closely associated with the failed coalition.

But SPD politician Dirk Wiese, who just a few days ago hinted that he was behind Pistorius, told the RND broadcaster this weekend that the party now had to "flip the switch and go into election campaign mode".

Party members have suggested they will focus on Scholz's experience and his reputation as a safe pair of hands in the election campaign.

Saarland's SPD state premier Anke Rehlinger told the TAZ newspaper that Scholz was "a pro in the chancellery" who had weathered multiple crises and overcome them.

Pistorius, 64, also highlighted Scholz's experience when he announced his decision to step out of the race.

"In Olaf Scholz we have an excellent chancellor," he said in a YouTube video last week.

The conservatives, meanwhile, have welcomed Scholz's candidacy because they think he will be easier to beat than Pistorius.

The decision "is good for us", said CDU lawmaker Mathias Middelberg. "Pistorius would have been more unpleasant for the CDU and the CSU."

Party members are set to formally sign off on Scholz's candidacy for chancellor at a congress in January.

J.Sauter--VB