Merkel searches for partners to build ruling coalition

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/24/merkel-searches-partners-build-coalition

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Angela Merkel fired the starting gun for weeks of negotiations as the candidates for a new coalition government jockeyed for position.

Given that each of her previous coalition partners suffered massive losses because of allying with her, analysts predicted that parties are unlikely to rush into her arms. Sigmar Gabriel, chairman of the Social Democrats, quickly dismissed speculation that a "grand coalition" would be a foregone conclusion. "It's up to Merkel to tell us what she wants … we don't want to be the next coalition partner driven into ruin by her," he said.

After Merkel announced in a lunchtime press conference on Monday that she had already contacted the Social Democrats and "doesn't rule out taking these talks further", Gabriel stated that he wouldn't be available for talks until Friday.

Merkel led her conservatives to their best result in more than 20 years: the Christian Democratic Union and its sister party won 41.5% of the vote in Sunday's election. Final results gave the CDU/CSU 311 seats, the SPD 192, the Left party 64 and the Greens 63.

A number of politicians on the left called for coalition talks between the SPD, the Greens and the leftwing Die Linke, a grouping which would have a theoretical majority over Merkel's party. "Let's talk to all of the parties, including Die Linke," tweeted Green party veteran Christian Ströbele. "The 'leftwing camp' has a majority in parliament."

Cem Özdemir, the Green co-chairman who is on his party's more conservative "Realo" wing, on Monday implied in an interview that the Greens should make use of the Free Liberals' collapse and move into their place: "There is such a thing as the legacy of political liberalism, which we have already partly inherited."

A minority government for Merkel's CDU remains possible only in theory, after Merkel on Monday ruled out going alone while there remains a threat of further turbulence in the eurozone: "We want a stable government," she said.

While coalition speculation continues, a new generation of locally elected politicians will prepare themselves for their first stint in the Bundestag. The next German government will include Cemile Giousouf, the first Muslim MP from Merkel's Christian Democrats.

It will also have its first two black MPs, a milestone in a country which is believed to be home to around 500,000 people of recent African descent. Karamba Diaby, born in Senegal, will be representing the town of Halle for the SPD in the former east Germany. A chemist, Diaby, 51, gained German citizenship in 2001 and pledged to fight for equal opportunities in education. "Every child born in Germany should have the chance to be successful in school regardless of their social background or the income of their parents," he said.

Charles M Huber, a TV actor born in Munich, whose father is Senegalese, will represent the CDU.

For Merkel's party, finding a coalition partner may take weeks, if not months. After the last grand coalition, from 2005 to 2009, the SPD was punished with the worst result in its history.

While the parties broadly agree on many policy areas, including Europe, there will be pressure from the SPD's left wing to get Merkel to concede on key policies such as the minimum wage and dual citizenship. Some Social Democrats have reportedly called for a member vote on a grand coalition.

A coalition with the weakened Green party, whose leadership on Monday also offered its joint resignation after a disappointing result, could be a less fractious option.

The former protest party has gravitated to the political centre over the years, and its key message of environmental responsibility could be said to chime with the CDU's emphasis on fiscal responsibility. The Green party has also been a vocal supporter of Germany's nuclear power phase-out under Merkel, and could help her realise her aim in a coalition.

However, a mere glance at the two party programmes would highlight the possibility of several confrontations between themm parties: on gay marriage, dual citizenship, drugs policy or tax rates, the CDU and Greens positions are far apart.

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