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...senior partner in a ruling coalition. And thanks to big gains by the center-right Free Democrats (FDP), who espouse economic liberalism and have a tradition of close ties to Washington, Merkel and her colleagues should be able to shed their existing coalition partner, the Social Democrats (SPD), for what is a more natural political ally. Yet the Christian Democrats did so with a lower percentage of votes than at the last election in 2005, despite Merkel's personal popularity, which transcends party allegiances...
There is certainly work waiting. One of Merkel's greatest achievements in her first term was to hold together a grand coalition with her rivals and natural ideological opponents, the SPD. She did so through compromise and caution. As the world weathered economic storms and rapid social change, the German government responded slowly and carefully. (See pictures of world leaders including Merkel on vacation...
...allies are likely to inspire more ambitious change. Top of the pile of unfinished business: nurturing and revitalizing a torpid economy, the world's fourth largest. Under the influence of her SPD partners, Merkel intervened to preserve jobs in big industries. Guido Westerwelle, the FDP's leader, and future deputy to Merkel in the new coalition, believes too little has been done to look after the interests of Germany's Mittelstand, its small- and medium-size businesses. He told TIME in a recent interview that some German stimulus measures had been ill-conceived. "You can sign 100 stimulus programs...
Westerwelle, like Merkel, looked for a sober tone as he addressed supporters. "We are ready to accept the responsibility," he said. Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the defeated SPD leader, sounded abject: "The voters have spoken. It's a bitter day for Germany's Social Democrats. It's a bitter result...
That's undoubtedly true. The SPD was squeezed not by its opponents on the right but by the hard-left party Die Linke, formed from the remnants of the former East Germany's Communist Party and SPD dissidents. And Merkel's win, though slim, secures her against critics in her party, who might have sought to topple her. Christian Bachmann, 37, a hospital doctor and Christian Democrat supporter, proclaims himself "happy with the result." He adds, "To be quite honest, I don't mind the FDP ending up so strong. This may give the CDU/CSU room for a little...