Endlich, eine Regierung!

Well, the Germans finally have a government, three weeks after the election that saw the CDU/CSU win a narrow victory over the Gerhard Schröder’s rot/grün coalition. After protracted meetings and several false starts, CDU/CSU and SPD bigwigs settled on a “Grand Coalition” and the remainder of the parties on the German political landscape are retreating into active opposition.

Schröder held on to almost the end, stating that it was the will of the German electorate that he remain as Chancellor, but support for this position weakened after the election and disappeared completely after the delayed vote in Dresden on October 2 (see my earlier post “Death of a Neo-Nazi”). Dresden voted CDU/CSU and added one more seat to Merkel’s majority in the Bundestag. The Schröder era is over and Angela Merkel becomes the 8th Chancellor of post-war Germany and its first ever female head of state (Kanzlerin).

The Grand Coalition deal resulted in the SPD holding control of eight important ministries (and hence cabinet positions) and the post of vice-chancellor, while Merkel takes over in the Chancellor’s office. The breakdown of power is as follows (not all of the positions have been confirmed at this time):

Kanzlerin Merkel CDU/CSU
Vizkanzler Müntefering SPD
Kanzleramtschaft (Chancellery) ? CDU/CSU
Auswärtiges (foreign ministry) Steinmeier SPD
Inneres (homeland affairs) ? CDU/CSU
Justiz Zypries SPD
Finanzen Steinbrück SPD
Wirtschaft (economy) Stoiber CDU/CSU
Verteidigung (defense) ? CDU/CSU
Familie ? CDU/CSU
Gesundheit (health) Schmidt SPD
Umwelt (environment) Gabriel SPD
Bildung (education) ? CDU/CSU
Entwicklung (development) Wieczorek-Zeul SPD
Arbeit (labor) Müntefering SPD
Verkehr (transportation) Tiefensee SPD
Verbraucher (consumer affairs) ? CDU/CSU
Kultur ? CDU/CSU
Bundestagspräsident Lammert CDU/CSU

Now we will see if the partners in this Elefantenhochzeit (literally “elephants’ wedding”, the term implies unsuitability of the partners and problems with getting along) can govern. There is precedent. In the late 1960s the Brandt government formed a grand coalition with the CDU and Brandt’s policy of Ostpolitik (reconciliation and return of normal relations with east Germany) continued. However, Angela Merkel is no Willy Brandt, oder?