German re-election will not see greater integration

Germany has the confidence and capacity to lead Europe, but, ahead of Angela Merkel’s expected re-election, that doesn’t mean its partners have to like it, writes John Lloyd.    

Germans choose a government on September 24, and that government is likely to be headed, for the 20th year in a row, by Angela Merkel.

The uncharismatic 63-year-old from East Germany may not have captured her fellow Germans’ hearts, but she has appealed so strongly to their rational selves that polls suggest they find no reason to replace her.