Bangladesh, May 11 -- When Olaf Scholzs beleaguered government finally collapsed on November 6 of last year, Germans might have hoped that their nations political fortunes were about to improve. Scholzs coalition, stitched together from fragile and incompatible parties, had long been marked by dysfunction, broken promises, and public disillusionment. Yet few could have predicted that the next chapter would begin in even greater embarrassment.

Just six months after Scholzs downfall, Germanys new leadership under Friedrich Merz has stumbled out of the gate, facing an unprecedented political debacle. On May 6, Merz, leader of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), failed to secure enough votes from the Bundestag to be confirmed ...