Gazing Into the Past: A Brief Chronicle of Angela Merkel's Political Career

On October 29, 2018, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the chair of Germany's Christian Democratic Union party, announced that she won't run again for the party leadership in December and that this term will also be her last as Germany's chancellor, as she won't seek re-election as a CDU lawmaker or run for any other political office.

Angela Merkel has served as Chancellor of Germany since 2005, and has been head of the Christian-Democratic Union party for nearly two decades.

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© AFP 2023 / Stefan Kiefer/ DPA

This picture, taken on August 22, 1992, shows Angela Merkel during her days as Germany's Federal Minister for Family Affairs (L) sitting on the ground with students at the 42nd International Youth Festival enjoying their traditional picnic in the park of Festival Hall in Bayreuth, eastern Germany.

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© REUTERS / Johannes Eisele

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) and Peter Mueller, former federal prime minister of the Saar region, hold glasses of beer during an election campaign rally in Bosen near Saarbruecken on August 15, 2009.

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© AP Photo / Markus Schreiber/Pool

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, and the Dalai Lama, left, leave after a meeting at the chancellery in Berlin on Sunday, Sept. 23, 2007. Merkel welcomed the Dalai Lama to her Berlin office for a meeting that underlined her willingness to address awkward issues in relations with China, despite reproach from Beijing.

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© AFP 2023 / Stephane De Sakutin

French President Francois Hollande (L) embraces German Chancellor Angela Merkel as he welcomes her upon her arrival at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris on March 4, 2016.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel attend the Hannover Messe trade show on April 8, 2013.

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© REUTERS / Axel Schmidt

German Chancellor Angela Merkel poses for a selfie during a federal election rally in Stralsund, Germany on September 16, 2017.

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin hold a meeting at Bocharov Ruchey, his state residence near Sochi.

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© REUTERS / Philippe Wojazer

German Chancellor Angela Merkel hides her face next to US President Donald Trump during the G20 leaders summit in Hamburg, Germany on July 7, 2017.

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© REUTERS / Wolfgang Rattay

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Rolled Products CEO Svein Richard Brandtzaeg, and Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg are seen during the official opening of a production line for the car industry at a branch of Norway's Hydro aluminum company in Grevenbroich, Germany on May 4, 2017.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel attend a show at a G20 summit.

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© AFP 2023 / Michael Kappeler

Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) gestures while chatting with US President Barack Obama, sitting on a bench outside Elmau Castle after a working session of the G7 summit near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany, on June 8, 2015.

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© AP Photo / Charles Dharapak

President Barack Obama gives German Chancellor Angela Merkel a kiss on the cheek on arrival for the G8 Summit on Friday, May 18, 2012 at Camp David, Maryland.

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© AP Photo / Jesco Denzel/German Federal Government

In this photo made available by the German Federal Government, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, center, speaks with U.S. President Donald Trump, seated at right, during the G7 Leaders' Summit in La Malbaie, Quebec, Canada on Saturday, June 9, 2018.

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© AP Photo / Eckehard Schulz

German Chancellor and candidate of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Angela Merkel and her husband Joachim Sauer, right, arrive for the opening of the Wagner Opera Festival in the city of Bayreuth, southern Germany, on Monday, July 25, 2005.

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© REUTERS / Kayhan Ozer/Presidential Press Office

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and German Chancellor Angela Merkel watch the Bosphorus before their meeting in Istanbul, Turkey on October 27, 2018.

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© REUTERS / Wolfgang Rattay

Christian Democrat (CDU) leader and German Chancellor-elect Angela Merkel laughs after being elected during a parliamentary meeting in Berlin on November 22, 2005.