Germany national parlimentary election goes to the polls on 22 September.
Conservative Chancellor Angela Merkel, the country’s leader since 2005, is seeking a third term at the helm of Europe’s biggest economy. Both she and her main rival, the Social Democrat leader Peer Steinbruck, would need the support of other parties to form a coalition government.
With German economic policy critical to stabilising debt-ridden European countries, the election outcome will be keenly watched by other eurozone nations and world financial markets.
