Merkel's Stamina in Coalition Talks Is Facing Its Ultimate Test
- Grand coalition needed 86 days in 2013 before cabinet sworn in
- North German experiment may be model for three-way alliance
Merkel's Election Challenges
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Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic bloc looks set for a clear win in Germany’s election on Sept. 24. But polls suggest she’ll still be short of a parliamentary majority in the Bundestag and will need weeks, if not months, to form a new coalition government.
The chancellor is likely to have two obvious options: a rerun of her “grand coalition” with the Social Democrats, or a combination previously untested at the national level in Germany, a three-way tie-up with the Free Democrats and Greens.