Schroeder bows out to make way for Merkel
Afp, Berlin
After seven years as chancellor of Germany, Gerhard Schroeder conceded defeat yesterday to make way for his female rival to become leader, after using every ounce of his political agility to extract key posts for his party in a coalition. In time, history may judge Schroeder as a chancellor who hung on too long, chasing a third term even after his Social Democrats won fewer seats and votes than their conservative rivals in elections on September 18. A deal with Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union is likely to see him shut out of Germany's future coalition government, after early speculation that he was considering being vice-chancellor or foreign minister.
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