Angela Merkel

Angela Dorothea Merkel (born July 17, 1954 in Hamburg) is a German politician and the conservative opposition's candidate to become Chancellor of Germany in the German federal election, 2005. "Angie" is another popular nickname for Merkel, used by supporters.

Leader of the Opposition

When the Kohl government was defeated in the 1998 general election, Merkel was named Secretary-General of the CDU. In this position, Merkel oversaw a string of Christian Democrat election victories in six out of seven provincial elections in 1999 alone, breaking the Social Democrat/Green coalition's hold on the Bundesrat, the upper house of the German parliament. As a result of a party financing scandal, which compromised many leading figures of the CDU (most notably Kohl himself and then-party chairman Wolfgang Schäuble, Kohl's hand-picked successor), Merkel gained further. She criticized her former mentor, Kohl, advocated a fresh start for the party without him, and was subsequently rewarded with replacing Schäuble to become the first female chairperson of her party. In November of 2001, despite her pledge to clean up the party, she refused to hold further inquiries into the financing scandal. Merkel's election on April 10, 2000 was surprising, as her personality offered a contrast to the party she had been chosen to lead; Merkel is a Protestant woman, originating from the predominantly Protestant northern Germany - the Christian Democrats is a party with deep Catholic roots, is male-dominated, socially conservative and has its stronghold in the southern part of Germany.

Related Topics:
Defeated in the 1998 general election - Scandal - Wolfgang Schäuble - April 10 - 2000 - Catholic

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Following Merkel's selection as CDU leader, she enjoyed considerable popularity among the German population and was favoured by Germans to become Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's challenger in the 2002 election. However, she was unpopular in her own party and most particularly its sister party (the Bavarian Christian Social Union, or CSU) and was subsequently out-maneuvered politically by the CSU leader Edmund Stoiber, who had the privilege to challenge Schröder but squandered a large lead in the opinion polls to lose narrowly.

Related Topics:
Chancellor Gerhard Schröder - 2002 election - Bavaria - Christian Social Union - Edmund Stoiber

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After Stoiber's defeat in 2002, in addition to her role as CDU chairwoman, she became leader of the conservative opposition in the lower house of the German parliament, the Bundestag - her rival, Friedrich Merz, who had held the post of legislative leader prior to the 2002 election, was eased out to make way for Merkel.

Related Topics:
2002 - Bundestag - Friedrich Merz

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