German Poll Stalemate
20/09/2005| IslamWeb
Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and conservative rival Angela Merkel each scrambled to form their own government yesterday after German voters failed to give either of them a ruling majority, leaving the country in political stalemate.
Both leaders said they would begin coalition talks after Sunday's election failed to produce a clear winner, launching what is essentially a race to see which candidate can form a stable alliance first. Merkel's opposition Christian Democrats eked out a narrow victory over Schroeder's Social Democrats but the outcome was so close that the chancellor refused to concede and called the result a mandate for a third term.
As the news sank in yesterday, Merkel reminded Schroeder she had actually won the election, albeit without a governable majority with her preferred junior coalition partner, the pro-business Free Democrats.
"That is a clear mandate to govern," she told reporters. "The election campaign is over, the voters have had their say and we are the strongest party in parliament."
As Schroeder and Merkel huddled with their parties yesterday ahead of intense negotiations to form a government, the stalemate has fed political uncertainty in a country struggling with higher than 11 per cent unemployment, a swelling public deficit and stagnant economic growth.
Merkel said she planned to speak to all political parties about a coalition, except the Left Party, a mix of disgruntled Social Democrats and ex-Communists.
The Social Democrats also excluded talks with the Left Party and said they had sent invitations for talks to the conservatives and the Free Democrats.
Three main coalition options emerged as parties weighed their choices.
An unwieldy left-right "grand coalition" grouping Social Democrats and Christian Democrats - a choice Merkel had labeled as a recipe for gridlock.
A centre-left alliance bringing together the Social Democrats, Greens and the Free Democrats, known as the "traffic light coalition" for the party colours red, yellow and green.
A left-centre-right alliance linking up the Christian Democrats, the Free Democrats and the Greens. Wags have dubbed this the "Jamaica coalition" as its party colours would match the Caribbean country's flag. European partners looked on with concern as the euro slumped, pressing the German parties to resolve the standoff as soon as possible.
"With all respect for the internal sensitivities of (Germany) I urge the German leaders to find as soon as possible a stable solution for Germany," EU commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said. "Without a dynamic Germany, Europe cannot recover."
The unclear outcome of Germany's elections has dashed hopes that the poll would unleash an economic reform drive to kickstart Europe's long-hoped-for recovery, experts said yesterday.
Many reformists had pinned their hopes on Merkel to launch new structural changes in Europe's economic powerhouse. In London, commentators said the German result had deprived British Premier Tony Blair of a much-sought ally in his reform crusade.
Across central Europe, governments held their tongues, diplomatically insisting they hoped for good relations with the region's main trading partner regardless of who ended up in command.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday that Merkel's failure to win a clear mandate proved that her opposition to Turkey's EU membership bid was the wrong policy. An estimated 500,000 of the 2.6 million people of Turkish origin in Germany are German citizens with the right to vote.
PHOTO CAPTION
A worker removes an election placard showing German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder one day after Germany's general election in Berlin September 19, 2005. (Reuters)