In the end, nothing matters - if there is a lack of trust

Angela Merkel can really only do everything wrong during her time in government. Overcoming the financial and euro crisis requires sacrifices and compromises on all sides. German citizens have to dig deep into their pockets. Anyone who has to make, implement and justify decisions in times like these must not shy away from making themselves unpopular. Angela Merkel has achieved the feat of making more friends than enemies as crisis chancellor, as the election results show. Whether you agree with her policies or not, it is worth studying her recipe for success in detail: Angela Merkel wins through trust and not through vision.

Angela Merkel is disrespectfully referred to as "Mutti" in the media. Viewed in a gender-neutral way, the writers expose themselves with this term. Which politician would they call "dad", let alone "mom"? Nevertheless, there is a kernel of truth in it. While Peer Steinbrück presents himself as a blustering patriarch, Angela Merkel focuses on concern for the future well-being of Europe and therefore Germany. She conveys a sense of security and the confidence that it is worth swallowing bitter pills on the road to recovery. The election of Angela Merkel is a message to the paternalists: power for the sake of power creates mistrust. What is needed are women and men who are trusted to put the well-being of the people at the center in a so-called maternal way and thus legitimize their leadership role.

In stormy times, you want crisis-proof personalities at the helm. Angela Merkel remains calm, repeats her messages clearly and simply and does not allow herself to be shaken by any headwind, no matter how strong. What some interpret as stubbornness, her voters see as resilience. The domestic political winds in Germany are rough, the currents from the Mediterranean countries ice-cold. The Chancellor reacts neither offended nor lachrymose. In a calm voice, she explains why she believes painful measures are necessary to overcome the crisis.

Progress in science requires an unsentimental departure from old certainties and theories. Physicist Angela Merkel brings this experience to her work as a politician. She has consistently pushed through a modernization of the CDU. On her way to the center, she is shaking up political creeds, seeking proximity to citizens and focusing on concrete solutions. What she was accused of in the election campaign as lacking profile is appreciated by her voters as pragmatism. She does not read Sunday sermons, as would be expected from a representative of a Christian politician. She names problems by name and offers solutions to overcome them, from her perspective without claiming objectivity.

On election night, there was already talk of a Queen Merkel. In recent years, she has indeed followed her royal path, but this reaction is evidence of great insecurity and paralysis. Neither superhuman grace nor a humble nation should be the result of Angela Merkel's choice of personality. On the contrary, her success obliges her to engage in open democratic debates in which critical questions are taken on board and interests are taken into account. Her role will be that of a mediator. It will not be possible to build up trust by playing down, obfuscating and devaluing. Angela Merkel will have to prove that her communication is not just rhetoric. The election in Germany shows the way forward for a modern political discourse: There can be excellent arguments about the perception of problems and the blueprints for solutions. You can no longer simply score points in Germany with ideological trench warfare. The debate is about the competition between credible recipes and trustworthy personalities. Voters will be watching with interest to see how politicians from all parties intend to win their trust over the next four years. Then, in the next election campaign, they too can simply state: "You know me."