The high 72.1 percent turnout in Dresden reflected how seriously voters took balloting, which was delayed due to the death of a candidate during the election campaign.

The slow pace of coalition talks is frustrating other parties, such as the Free Democrats, who also could try to build a government with the conservatives if a grand coalition fails to coalesce. They criticized plans to end negotiations Oct. 31 as being too late and not indicative of a government capable of bringing about badly needed reforms to create jobs and kick-start Europe's largest economy.

The Free Democrats head Guido Westerwelle celebrated the result, which he said meant that Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder "must finally understand that his time is up."

The Japan Times Weekly: Oct. 8, 2005
(C) All rights reserved