Angela Merkel sworn in as German chancellor for 3rd time

December 19, 2013

German Chancellor Angela Merkel sworn in for a third term after being reelected in a vote in the lower house of parliament. The event marks the beginning of the third so-called grand coalition in the Germany’s post-war history.
Merkel’s conservative Union bloc – The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) won 41.5% of vote. To gain absolute majority they formed coalition with their rivals Social Democrats (SPD). By this coalition, for the next four years, Europe’s biggest economy will be ruled by the Germany’s two biggest parties.
The new government faces a host of challenges, from bedding down European reforms aimed at shielding the bloc from future crises, to seeing through Merkel’s costly switch from nuclear to renewable energy, etc.
Note:Angela Merkel is a former research scientist who has been the Chancellor of Germany since 2005, and the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) since 2000. She is the first woman to hold either office.