Photo Gallery Merkel in Pole Position
Chancellor Angela Merkel will almost certainly win a third term at the helm of Germany on Sunday. She ran a campaign tailor-made for Germany's current yearning for peace and quiet.
"Mommy will take care of it." The slogan used on some Merkel campaign handouts sums up Germany's feelings for their chancellor. She has kept the worst of the euro crisis away from her country and done little to rock the boat.
Merkel's challenger, Peer Steinbrück of the Social Democratic Party, tried to convince Germany that the chancellor was trying to duck the tough decisions. But his style, replete with brash humor, did not go over well.
Merkel's campaign was short on message and long on persona. This poster reads "A Chancellor for Germany." The bland slogan neatly sums up her campaign that avoided any risks whatsoever.
Throughout the campaign season, Merkel once again demonstrated her deep understanding of the German electorate, which is in the mood for continuity rather than change.
The chancellor's famous hand gesture became something of a meme in the campaign. Here, it is shown on a massive poster near the main train station in Berlin.
A different hand gesture became the iconic image of Peer Steinbrück's campaign. A photograph of him giving the finger to the camera was published a week ago on the cover of the Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin as part of a photo interview. It was in response to a question about the many nasty nicknames that have dogged him throughout the campaign, but was ill advised nonetheless. This image is of an ironic ballot published in the business daily Handelsblatt on Friday.
Merkel's followers call her affectionately "Angie." Her popularity ratings remain exceedingly high, even after eight years in office.
Steinbrück has had a tough time of convincing voters that he should be chancellor, despite his firm grasp on the issues and his experience, part of which involved him being Merkel's finance minister in the depths of the financial crisis.
Steinbrück on the campaign trail in Munich. His brash humor provided for levity, but isn't likely to translate into sufficient votes to unseat Merkel. Still, he is likely to improve on his party's abysmal showing in 2009.
Merkel's current coalition partner, the Free Democrats, could fail to cross the five percent threshold for representation in German parliament on Sunday. Even if they do succeed, it isn't likely going to be enough for a continuation of Merkel's current coalition. Here, lead candidate Rainer Brüderle and party head Philipp Rösler.
Gregor Gysi is a lead candidate for the far-left Left Party. Steinbrück could give Merkel a run for her money if he agreed to form a coalition with the Left Party. But the party was formed from the remnants of the East German Communists and widely shunned as a result. Still, it will likely win close to 10 percent of the vote on Sunday and could be the country's third strongest party.
The Left Party's other lead personality is Sahra Wagenknecht. She and Gysi can't stand each other, a rift which reflects the east-west divide in the party.
The Green Party was flying high in 2011, polling at well over 20 percent. But on Sunday, they could fall below 10 percent. Katrin Goring-Eckhardt has failed to excite voters as a co-candidate. And her other half, Jürgen Trittin, has become embroiled in a scandal surrounding his tacit support for a pro-pedophile stance decades ago. The party's poll numbers have been plummeting for weeks.
The Alternative for Germany party, led by Bernd Lucke, pictured here, would like to see the end of the euro. The party stands a good chance of leaping the five percent hurdle for parliamentary representation. The poster behind him reads: "Draghi gambles. You Pay."
What happened to the Pirate Party? Just one year ago, the digital rights party was riding high, having managed to find its way into several state parliaments. Since then, infighting has caused support for the party to evaporate. It is unlikely to win enough votes on Sunday to enter the Bundestag.
