ARD host Sandra Maischberger, Social Democratic Party (SPD) Chancellor Olaf Scholz, his conservative rival of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Friedrich Merz and ZDF host Maybrit Illner are pictured in a studio of the ARD and ZDF television broadcasters ahead of the first TV debate between Scholz and Merz in Berlin, Germany, February 9, 2025. Michael Kappeler/Pool via REUTERS