Word: fdp
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...Meanwhile, there was a strong showing from some of the country's smaller parties. The Green Party won 12% of the vote, and the Left Party, successor to East Germany's Communist Party, took 7.5% of the vote. But the real winner was the pro-business Free Democratic Party (FDP), which won its best-ever result in a European election, with 11% of the vote. The FDP, under its outspoken leader Guido Westerwelle, is Merkel's preferred coalition partner. Their combined results leave Merkel's Conservatives and the FDP just short of the 50% they would need in September should...
...behalf of her party and for her own re-election in September. Gerd Langguth, a political scientist and Merkel biographer, says the Hesse result means Merkel's return to the Chancellery is assured. The real question is whether Merkel will be able to form a coalition with the FDP or continue the so-called grand coalition with the left-leaning Social Democrats (SPD), he says. "Merkel believes that it would be easier to deal with the financial crisis if the SPD were locked into a grand coalition, but if there is a majority for coalition with the FDP she will...
...good news for Merkel. Although Koch retained power in Hesse, the CDU's share of the vote remained static. The biggest gains were posted by smaller parties like the FDP, the Greens and the Left. In such turbulent times, voters might be expected to turn out in their droves. But voter participation in Hesse was only 61%, the lowest turnout ever recorded in the state. "The federal election will depend on which parties can mobilize voters but for the moment only the small parties are doing so - especially the FDP and the Greens," said Peter Lösche...
...Hesse results are mirrored in September, Merkel is likely to form a coalition with the FDP, in many ways an easier proposition than governing in grand coalition as she has done since 2005. But the strength of the FDP will make it harder now for Merkel to act quickly to counter the growing economic and financial crisis. The grand coalition of CDU/CSU and SPD unites the biggest parties in the center and the left of the political spectrum and has until now wielded sufficient power to pass laws in the lower house of parliament and then rubber stamp them...
...five state governments, the FDP has elbowed its way up to the table and can block laws in the upper house. FDP chairman Guido Westerwelle, who meets Merkel this week for talks, is eager to test his new power by forcing Merkel to revise her €50 billion economic stimulus package to include deeper income tax cuts and fewer cash incentives to consumers, such as the €2,500 handout designed to persuade Germans to trade in their old cars for new models. Whether or not Westerwelle prevails, the shifting balance of power will have an impact in Germany...