| |
| 1994, May 23 |
| |
| Germany elected Roman Herzog as president, making him the first federally elected president since German reunification. | 1 |
| |
| 1995, March 30 |
| |
| The Central Bank in Germany increased its cuts in order to help slow the depreciation of the U.S. dollar. On Aug. 24 the Bundesbank cut two of its important interest rates in order to slow the increasing value of the mark in hopes of stimulating the economy. | 2 |
| |
| 1998, Jan. 1 |
| |
| Unemployment in Germany, soaring to 12.6 percent, reached its highest level since before World War II. | 3 |
| |
| Sept. 27 |
| |
| The Christian Democrats (CDU) were defeated in parliamentary elections by new chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's SPD. This ended Helmut Kohl's 16-year run as chancellor of Germany, the longest rule by any German chancellor in the 20th century. Kohl's government fell as a result of growing public discontent over Germany's economy. Schroeder had campaigned on a centrist platform, promising to lower taxes, reform the German welfare system, and increase pension and welfare payments, which had been cut under Kohl's government. | 4 |
| |
| Oct. 27 |
| |
| The SPD formed a coalition government with the Green Party. Holding 345 of 669 seats in the Parliament, the new 16-member cabinet was made up of a few centrists and several left-wing reformists. The major objectives of the coalition included reductions in Germany's income tax, creation of 100,000 jobs, and a disputed plan to phase out German reliance on nuclear energy. | 5 |
| |
| |
