Germany is set to hold fresh elections on February 23, eleven weeks after the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's governing coalition, with sources on Tuesday saying he could ask parliament to vote him out of office on Dec.

The government of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will face a confidence vote on December 16 ahead of new parliamentary elections expected to be scheduled for February 23, following the shock collapse of the chancellor's three-party coalition last week.

The date is a compromise between the conservative opposition, who wanted a vote in January for fear of leaving Germany rudderless at a time of economic and diplomatic crisis, and Scholz, who wanted a mid-March election to give authorities and parties more time to prepare.