Launching a Career in Politics

Angela Merkel was involved with the 1989 movement for democracy and joined the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), a liberal conservative party in Germany. In 1990 she was elected as member of the parliament. Merkel served under Chancellor Helmut Kohl as minister of youth and women between 1991 and 1994, and as minister of the environment between 1994 and 1998. During this time she became the Chancellor’s protégé. Kohl was defeated in 1998 and Merkel started serving as the secretary general of the CDU. After distancing herself from her former mentor, she became the leader of the party in 2000.

Political Achievements

In 2005 Angela Merkel achieved a narrow victory for the CDU against the Social Democrats. Because no party secured a workable number of seats, the CDU was forced into an alliance with the Social Democrats. Merkel became chancellor and held this position until after the elections in 2009 when the CDU formed a centre-right alliance with the Free Democrats. Despite the government responding negatively to the after-effects of the economic downturn in Europe in 2008, there remained a low level of unemployment and a steady economic growth in Germany. In 2013 the CDU achieved yet another victory but fell short of a majority vote. The party again entered into an alliance with the Social Democrats while Merkel continued to serve as chancellor.