The potency and political breadth of Saturday’s demonstration (dubbed “The end of the pandemic — day of freedom," by its organizers) rattled political leaders. [244] The expression is credited for the name of the political party Alternative for Germany, which was founded in 2013. ", "Angela Merkel 'world's most powerful woman, "Why Angela Merkel is TIME's Person of the Year", "As Obama Exits World Stage, Angela Merkel May Be the Liberal West's Last Defender", "German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the newly christened 'leader of the free world' is preparing to step back from politics – and experts say 'the coming storm is ... quite powerful, "For years, Angela Merkel saw off all challengers. In May 2016, Merkel received the International Four Freedoms Award from the Roosevelt Foundation in Middelburg, the Netherlands. [178] In February 2020, Kramp-Karrenbauer announced that she would resign as party leader of the CDU in the summer, after party members in Thuringia defied her by voting with Alternative for Germany to support a FDP-candidate for minister-president. Such an initiative was unprecedented in the GDR of that period, and initially resisted by the University; however, with backing of the local leadership of the SED party, the project was allowed to proceed. The second Cabinet of Angela Merkel was sworn in on 28 October 2009. In a paper published on December 31st in PLOS One, an international team of researchers in political science, government, and social work argues that “country cultural values offer [a] more substantive explanation for COVID-19 outcomes” in nations that happen to be led by women. Angela Dorothea Merkel[a] (née Kasner; born 17 July 1954) is a German politician who has been Chancellor of Germany since 2005. [264], Merkel features as a main character in two of the three plays that make up the Europeans Trilogy (Bruges, Antwerp, Tervuren) by Paris-based UK playwright Nick Awde: Bruges (Edinburgh Festival, 2014) and Tervuren (2016). [179], In 1977, at the age of 23, Merkel, then Angela Kasner, married physics student Ulrich Merkel (born 1953)[180] and took his surname. Chancellor Angela Merkel recently admitted that the AfD is a “problem” and most political analysts predict that the party will enter Germany’s federal parliament after the 2017 general election. ", "Hillary is America's Merkel, but not in the way Trump thinks", "Merkel honours Mohammad cartoonist at press award", "The Sarrazin Debate: Germany Is Becoming Islamophobic", "Merkel defends 'Muhammad' cartoonist, condemns Koran-burning", "Merkel honours Danish Muhammad cartoonist Westergaard", "Award for Danish Muhammad Cartoonist: Merkel Defends Press Freedom, Condemns Koran-Burning", "Ehrung des Mohammed-Karikaturisten: Angela Merkels Risiko", "Sprachkritik: "Alternativlos" ist das Unwort des Jahres", "German Chancellor Merkel Defends Work of Intelligence Agencies", "Germany's Merkel rejects NSA-Stasi comparison", "Angela Merkel refers to internet as 'virgin territory, "Merkel beim Besuch von Obama: Das Netz lacht über Merkels "Internet-Neuland, "Merkel compared NSA to Stasi in heated encounter with Obama", Merkel defends German intelligence cooperation with NSA, "Sensible talks urged by Merkel to restore trust with US", "Gehört der Islam zu Deutschland? [150] Other European governments eventually either raised the limits or promised to guarantee savings in full.[150]. [66] On 18 September 2005, Merkel's CDU/CSU and Schröder's SPD went head-to-head in the national elections, with the CDU/CSU winning 35.2% (CDU 27.8%/CSU 7.5%)[citation needed] of the second votes to the SPD's 34.2%. KELLY: All right. [173] However, political observers had long considered Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer as Merkel's protégé groomed for succession. General Secretary of the Christian Democratic Union, Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Vorpommern-Rügen – Vorpommern-Greifswald I, Christian Democratic Union (East Germany), Minister for the Environment and Nuclear Safety, accession of Turkey to the European Union, Foreign policy of the Angela Merkel government, List of international trips made by Angela Merkel, Evangelical Church in Berlin, Brandenburg and Silesian Upper Lusatia, Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, Order of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria, Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding, The decisions of Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2015 on migration policies, hundreds of thousands of migrants from the Middle East, http://www.oecd.org/social/expenditure.htm, Government continues as acting government, "Time Person of the Year 2015: Angela Merkel", "Merkel: From austerity queen to 'leader of free world, "The Secret to Germany's COVID-19 Success: Angela Merkel Is a Scientist", "German Chancellor Angela Merkel makes a hat-trick win in 2013 Elections", "Angela Merkel faces multiple challenges in her fourth term", "Angela Merkel faces outright rebellion within her own party over refugee crisis", "Merkels Vater gestorben – Termine abgesagt", "Picturing the Family: Media, Narrative, Memory | Research", "Six things you didn't know about Angela Merkel", "Ahnenforschung: Kanzlerin Angela Merkel ist zu einem Viertel Polin", "Angela Merkel: Forged in the Old Communist East, Germany's Chancellor-in-Waiting Is Not like the Others", "Who's Afraid of Angela Merkel? [31] While a student, she participated in the reconstruction of the ruin of the Moritzbastei, a project students initiated to create their own club and recreation facility on campus. While Chancellor Schröder made clear he would not join the war in Iraq,[55] Merkel and the CDU-CSU supported the invasion of Iraq. [101] That year, nearly 1.1 million asylum seekers entered Germany. [265], On the American sketch-comedy Saturday Night Live, she has been parodied by Kate McKinnon since 2013. “What is happening is wrong. [125][15], During the German presidency of the european council Merkel not only changed her mind, but spearheaded negotiating a reconstruction package for the time after the pandemic.[126]. Those parties are - by and large - likely to be relieved by Mrs Merkel's decision. Literature argued that the increased right-wing preferences are a result of the European migrant crisis which has brought thousands of people, predominantly from Muslim countries to Germany, and spurred a perception among a share of Germans that refugees constitute an ethnic and cultural threat to Germany.[114]. She went on to say that Europe could only maintain its prosperity by being innovative and measuring itself against the best. "Here we have the situation where six members, or even seven if you want to add the EU, stand against one. In October 2018, Merkel announced that she would stand down as Leader of the CDU at the party convention, and would not seek a fifth term as Chancellor in 2021. BERLIN (AP) — Chancellor Angela Merkel’s center-right party chose Armin Laschet, the pragmatic governor of Germany’s most populous state, as its new leader Saturday. Following a party funding scandal that compromised many leading figures of the CDU – including Kohl himself and his successor as CDU Leader, Wolfgang Schäuble – Merkel criticised her former mentor publicly and advocated a fresh start for the party without him.[51]. [262][263], Merkel was portrayed by Swiss actress Anna Katarina in the 2012 political satire film The Dictator. According to her personal statements, Sarrazin's approach is "totally unacceptable" and counterproductive to the ongoing problems of integration. Life After Angela Merkel. German Chancellor Angela Merkel's center-right party is choosing a new leader on the weekend Saturday Jan. 16 and Sunday Jan. 17, 2021, a decision that will help determine who succeeds Merkel … ROB SCHMITZ, BYLINE: Hey, Mary Louise. "[38], Merkel was educated at Karl Marx University, Leipzig, where she studied physics from 1973 to 1978. [111] There appeared to be a consensus among officials, with the exception of Merkel, that a higher level of scrutiny was needed in vetting migrants with respect to their mission in Germany. All this was brewing since Trump came to power, as both leaders have very different positions on the political spectrum. In her childhood and youth, Merkel was known among her peers by the nickname "Kasi", derived from her last name Kasner. [112], In October 2016, Merkel travelled to Mali and Niger. [110] The November 2015 Paris attacks prompted a reevaluation of German officials' stance on the EU's policy toward migrants. He is known for a botched attempt at reforming the tax system. Plickert, Philip (Editor) (2017) "Merkel: Eine kritische Bilanz", FinanzBuch Verlag, This page was last edited on 24 January 2021, at 03:53. The coalition's intent was to cut public spending whilst increasing VAT (from 16 to 19%), social insurance contributions and the top rate of income tax. [43] However, Merkel has denied this claim and stated that she was secretary for culture, which involved activities like obtaining theatre tickets and organising talks by visiting Soviet authors. The same year, in March, China's President Xi Jinping visited Germany. The leading characters in the drama: Angela Merkel, Viktor Orbán, Mateusz Morawiecki, and Mark Rutte Next, I would like to quote Ildikó Lendvai , a politically savvy, formerly prominent MSZP politician, who since her retirement has been the author of many political analyses. [184], Merkel is a fervent football fan and has been known to listen to games while in the Bundestag and to attend games of the national team in her official capacity. Merkel has twice been named the world's second most powerful person following Vladimir Putin by Forbes magazine, the highest ranking ever achieved by a woman. For other uses, see, Members of the German Bundestag from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Minister for Women and Youth, 1991 - 1994, General Secretary of the CDU, 1998 - 2000. She signed the agreement for the Transatlantic Economic Council on 30 April 2007 at the White House. The appointment of Armin Laschet at an online Christian Democratic Union convention comes as Ms. Merkel nears the end of her 16-year spell as German … Political parties form colorful spectrum in Germany A history of Germany's postwar elections For a long time, the German political palette was dominated by black, red, and yellow. Following German reunification in 1990, Merkel was elected to the Bundestag for the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. "[140], In July 2019, the UN ambassadors from 22 nations, including Germany, signed a joint letter to the UNHRC condemning China's mistreatment of the Uyghurs as well as its mistreatment of other minority groups, urging the Chinese government to close the Xinjiang re-education camps. Merkel's own ambition to become Chancellor was well-known, but she lacked the support of most Minister-presidents and other grandees within her own party. Unemployment sank below the mark of 3 million unemployed people. [134], Following the G7 Summit in Italy and the NATO Summit in Brussels, Merkel stated on 28 May 2017 that the US was no longer the reliable partner Europe and Germany had depended on in the past. Although she did not participate in the crowd celebrations the night the wall came down, one month later Merkel became involved in the growing democracy movement, joining the new party Democratic Awakening. Merkel declined, using the excuse that she could not keep secrets well enough to be an effective spy. Merkel … [66] A grand coalition between the CDU/CSU and SPD faced the challenge that both parties demanded the chancellorship. On 1 July 2018, Seehofer rejected the agreement Merkel had obtained with EU countries as too little and declared his resignation during a meeting of his party's executive, but they refused to accept it. [102] German opposition to the government's admission of the new wave of migrants was strong and coupled with a rise in anti-immigration protests. [47], The fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 served as the catalyst for Merkel's political career. [84] According to a poll carried out just days after the 2016 Berlin truck attack, in which it was asked which political leader(s) Germans trust to solve their country's problems; 56% named Merkel, 39% Seehofer (CSU), 35% Gabriel (SPD), 32% Schulz (SPD), 25% Özdemir (Greens), 20% Wagenknecht (Left Party), 15% Lindner (FDP), and just 10% for Petry (AfD). Merkel played a crucial role in managing the global financial crisis and the European debt crisis. Angela Dorothea Merkel (née Kasner; born 17 July 1954) is a German politician who has been Chancellor of Germany since 2005. [245], In July 2013, Merkel defended the surveillance practices of the National Security Agency, and described the United States as "our truest ally throughout the decades". Described her in charge the CDU a reevaluation of German and Polish descent asylum seekers entered.... Unity, especially in the wrong place here '' April 2007 at the 2017 G20 Hamburg summit to freedom expression! 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