The era of Merkel is coming to an end after 16 years of stability. In the Chancellor’s government Angela Merkel67 years old, member of the conservative party Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Germany has established itself as the largest economy in the European bloc. Many obstacles were overcome: the first woman took office, the second woman to stay in office longer after World War II, and the only one to retain her popularity over a long period of reign. When he came to power in 2005, he even said: “Who would have thought that the highest government office would be a woman?” For 10 years in a row, Forbes magazine has recognized her as the most influential female figure in the world.

Closer to the transitional period, the consensus among analysts and political scientists showed that if the current center-right chancellor runs again, she will emerge victorious for a new term, having served in power for two decades. However, this definition was not obtained directly by popular vote. The German political system is parliamentarianism, that is, what determines who is the prime minister is the size of the party assembly and the coalition formed between them.

Candidate Armin Laschetfrom the same party as Merkel, she was not lucky by inheritance from the chancellor. His reputation does not match that of Merkel. He was caught laughing in the background at a press conference after the July flood that killed more than 200 people. Instead of him, Olaf Scholzfrom the Social Democratic Party (SPD), deputy chancellor and finance minister, center-left, is more likely to become the next chancellor. However, achievement depends on negotiations in the coalition of parties that won the majority of the seats. Angela even congratulated Olaf on winning the party. Despite the fact that they have different acronyms and opposite positions, many people believe that she has more in common with Olaf than with Armin.

Flavia Biroli, professor at the Institute of Political Science at the University of Brasilia (UnB), co-author of Feminism and Politics, An Introduction and author of Gender and Inequality: The Limits of Democracy in Brazil, both published by BoiTempo, to question Angela’s fame. “Popularity is relative. These elections were the worst for her party in a long time, and even in the region of Merkel’s political activity, the SPD has become the CDU. ” There is expected to be a downsizing coalition of the Green Party and the liberal Liberal Democratic Party (FDP), which has done better with voters under 30. Climate is high on the agenda of this group. One of Olaf’s promises was precisely the fight against climate change, as well as raising the minimum wage.

Despite the long history, the image of Angela Merkel as a world leader and mediator in the conflict remains strong in the imagination of the population. This is due to his serene demeanor in politics, his adherence to democratic values ​​and the trust he radiates. A wide and bold profile were not his characteristics, on the contrary, he retained a more serious and calm type, able to return to him as many times as necessary. Even in the face of successive crises that hit the European bloc, such as the European public debt crisis, the Greek economic crisis, the refugee crisis, Brexit (UK exit from the European Union) and the covid-19 pandemic, it seemed inspiring. , above all, calmness. It also played a decisive role in preventing Greece from leaving the European Union.

Germany’s influence was greatest within the bloc. There have been many achievements. Accustomed to being the only woman in the meetings she attended, she endured awkward, if not sexist, episodes, such as being massaged without the consent of the former US president. George Bush, or when the former Prime Minister of Italy Silvio Berlusconi as German news site Deutsche Welle recalls, he kept her waiting during a meeting by talking on the phone.

However, issues related to women’s rights are not the main concern of her party, and Angela has been billed as a “stubborn feminist”, as it was only this September at an event with the participation of Chimamanda Dangerous Adichie who echoed the phrase of a famous Nigerian author: “We must all be feminists. [..] and yes, I’m a feminist. ” In the same conversation, she said that some time ago she was embarrassed to declare herself so.

Belated recognition was reflected in her policies, only in 2020 Germany approved a project setting quotas to increase the participation of women on the board of directors of companies. In an interview with Deutsche Welle, equality consultant Janina Kugel, wanted to dispel the myth that the country has advanced in this discussion. “The country believes that since we have had a female chancellor for the last 15 years, Germany is very progressive on this issue, but in reality this is not the case.” The CDU opposed changes to the law criminalizing abortion, as opposed to the Social Democratic Party.

Yanina Onuki, a professor at the University of São Paulo (USP) and research group coordinator on gender and international relations, says many of her strategies have benefited women and that Angela had the courage to navigate the predominantly male world of politics, but she could have done more. “As the main representative of women in Europe in recent years, taking a leadership position and gaining recognition as such, I could make policies more directly targeted at women, especially in the fight against gender-based violence.”

However, advances in human rights have been made at his behest, such as the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2017.

In terms of her profile, one of the most cited traits of the Chancellor is her slowness in making decisions. Not because of an inability to choose one path or another, but because of intense reflection. “I always take the time to weigh the risks,” he said.
Often the chapter of his story is recalled in the newspapers in the moments accompanying his farewell, when he was still Angela Kasner, early 60s resident of Templin, north of Berlin, in East Germany. During his swimming lesson, he reportedly spent 45 minutes at the base of a 3m high trampoline before diving into the pool. All other young people were waiting for their colleague. Then no one believed that she would pick up the courage, and only when the school bell rang, she finally left. I was 9 years old.

In the same way he followed her into adulthood and received a new verb in the unofficial dictionary: “zu merkeln”, something close to indecision. One of his decisions, one of his great legacies, was when he decided to open the doors to refugees in 2015, mostly Syrians. By 2018, there were 1.8 million people with refugee status in the country. The phrase became his government’s catchphrase “Wir schaffen das” (literal translation “we can do it”) when he decided to open the country. The choice was supported by public opinion, 66% of citizens considered it correct, according to the Politbarometer poll.

On the other hand, at this stage there was an invasion of extreme right-wing figures and parties in Germany and an increase in populism. Critics blame her for splitting the Union, in part because of her migration policy. But he always avoided collisions and polarizations whenever possible.

There is a widespread belief among her peers of a patient, courageous and brilliant leader. “He has an unusual ability to store all facts and information. He is unusually smart, possesses incredible intellectual strength, including physical and mental. Not forgetting that she has infinite patience “, – defined her German politician, one of Angela’s closest ministers, to EL PAS.

The seeds of his interest in politics were sown in a home that, he said, thrived on “political awareness and openness to the world.” Stephen Cornelius in the biography “Angela Merkel: Chancellor and Her World” (Ed. nVerses). Her father was a Protestant pastor, and her mother was an English teacher, the family did not accept the separation from Germany, and Angela was already more interested in politics on the western side. The Stasi (secret police of the GDR) tried to persuade her to cooperate, but only said that she was not capable of keeping secrets, says Stefan. His professional career began in academia, not in institutional politics. In 1978 she graduated from the Physics Department of the University of Leipzig and worked for several years as a research assistant at the Central Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Berlin Academy of Sciences.

Just two years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, he joined the Bundestag (analogous to the Chamber of Deputies in Brazil). During the office Helmut Kohl headed the Ministry of Women and Youth Affairs, and then the Ministry of the Environment. Since then, he has advocated for cutting CO2 emissions. She was one of the great proponents of a climate agreement between countries and played a leading role in the negotiations of the Paris Agreement in 2015. She called herself “Chancellor for Climate”. But within the country, his actions were considered insufficient in this area. The German Constitutional Court ruled this year that the 2019 Climate Protection Act is partially unconstitutional after being convicted by a group of young activists.

They have created an almost caricatured facet of a leader who values ​​routine and doesn’t care about power. Due to the fall of the Berlin Wall on Thursday, instead of rushing to the scene, he followed the appointed time and went to the sauna as he had that day. “I thought that if the wall opened, it is unlikely to close again, so I decided to wait,” he would say.

More recently, social media images of the Chancellor making his own purchases in the local market have contrasted with images of other government officials, with perhaps the most emblematic of Donald Trump, the former president of the United States.

“Merkel turned out to be the ‘best hope’ for her fans and the ‘lesser evil’ for most of her opponents. By all accounts, the Chancellor managed to reduce political differences and convince everyone that a compromise is always possible, ”she says. Ivan Krastev, German political scientist and president of the Center for Liberal Strategies, in an article for Deutsche Welle summarizing Merkel’s legacy. There is no shortage of farewell fasts and offerings in his last days. Despite the criticism, respect and admiration seem to stand out.