February 9, 2012
Following elections on September 27, Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) and their CSU Bavarian allies were able to ditch their previous coalition partners, the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), and switch to the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP).
Chancellor Angela Merkel
In 2005, Angela Merkel (CDU), 55, became Germany's first chancellor from the formerly communist eastern half of the country, as well as its first female leader and its youngest.
Photo: dpa