It's the second and last time the two chancellor candidates will get a chance to debate each other on national issues before the vote on February 23. according to DW for the latest.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz of the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) and his main rival, Friedrich Merz of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), are set to hold their final debate ahead of the Germany's federal election.
With just four days to the vote, Merz's CDU/CSU bloc are leading in the polls, with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in second, and Scholz's SPD trailing in third.
About 59 million people are eligible to cast ballots on February 23
AfD hits back amid alleged donation scandal
Just days out from the federal election, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has rejected reports it received a possible unlawful donation.
At issue is a sum of €2.35 million ($2.4 million) that the party reported to the administration of the Bundestag, the lower house of parliament, at the start of February. The money was reportedly to be used for billboard posters in a number of German cities.
According to the Bundestag register, the donor was listed as Austrian citizen Gerhard Dingler, a former regional manager of Austria's right-wing populist Freedom Party.
However, new investigations by Germany's news magazine and Austria's allege that Dingler only served as a front man for the donation, and that the money actually came from German real estate billionaire Henning Conle.
Under Germany's Political Parties Act, so called straw donations, where the identity of the real donor is concealed, are prohibited. If the allegations are proven, the AfD could face a fine three times as high as the donation — around €7 million.
AfD Federal Treasurer Carsten Hütter said in a statement he was offering "full transparency and cooperation to any investigating authorities."
He added that Dingler had "repeatedly assured the party that the donation in question was made from his private assets."
A spokesperson for AfD leader Alice Weidel told that the Dingler had said the payment "in particular was not made on behalf of a third party."
What else do we know about the donation?
According to and , Dingler is said to have received €2.6 million from Conle. He reportedly told his bank the money was to be used for a real estate project. But a short time later, some €2.3 million was sent from his account to a billboard advertising company in Cologne. The AfD subsequently reported the same sum to the Bundestag administration, listing Dingler as the donor.
reported that Austrian authorities are now investigating allegations of money laundering, among other offenses.
At the time the donation was first reported in early February, Dingler was cited as saying he wanted to support the AfD because he was concerned about a further escalation in the war in Ukraine and saw the far-right party as the only force in Germany credibly advocating peace
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