Germany was plunged into uncertainty on Sunday night when the leaders of the two main parties claimed they could become chancellor after neither won a majority in the general election. The result was a blow to the conservative challenger, Angela Merkel, whose party started the campaign with a 21-point lead. Although Merkel could still become the country’s new leader, she can now probably only do so as part of a ”grand coalition” with Gerhard Schröder’s Social Democratic party.
Polls indicated that the two parties would have almost exactly the same number of seats in Parliament. The outcome suggested that neither side was in a strong position to bring about reforms to pull Germany out of its economic stagnation. Earlier, Merkel insisted her party had received a mandate to form a coalition government and that she would talk to all parties except the new Left party. ”What is important now is to form a stable government, and we … quite clearly have the mandate to do that,” she said.
Schröder, addressing crowds of cheering supporters, said: ”I feel myself vindicated. I have a mandate to ensure that in the next four years there will be a stable government in our country under my leadership.” He said negotiations between his and the other parties, except the Left party, would begin.
With votes counted in 98% of districts, Merkel’s Christian Democrats had won 35,3% of the vote; Schröder’s party 34,2%; the Free Democrats 9,8%, the Left party 8,6% and the Greens 8,1%. – Guardian Unlimited