The chancellor's legacy

Repair work needed on Germany's external relations

The divided mandate given by voters in the Bundestag election in Germany means that Chancellor Angela Merkel will have to remain in office for weeks or months yet, as the country goes through a complex process of coalition negotiation and formation. After the last election, this process took six full months. In this one, there is at least one clear shift: Ms Merkel’s ruling Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union party won only 24.1 per cent of the vote, the lowest vote share in its history. Meanwhile, the other major party and the CDU/CSU’s partner in the three recent “grand coalition”