The Hurdles That Remain to Merkel’s Fourth Term

More than four months after winning Germany’s elections, Chancellor Angela Merkel is still waiting to be sworn in. A first attempt at putting together a coalition fell apart. Now Merkel has been thrown a lifeline by the Social Democratic Party, which voted on Jan. 21 to begin official talks with Merkel’s bloc on forming a “grand coalition” -- a government of the two biggest parties in parliament. With those negotiations just beginning, the chancellor’s fourth term isn’t in the bag yet.

The Social Democrats, known as the SPD in German, are struggling with internal party divisions that could yet derail the formation of a government. Merkel’s bloc -- which comprises the Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian ally, the Christian Social Union -- is starting to have second thoughts. The already slow-moving coalition-building process has ground to a glacial pace. And even if the two sides strike a coalition agreement, there’s some question over whether the SPD’s membership would vote to approve it.