In the German general election of September 2013, to the relief of the mainstream, the AfD failed to break through the 5 percent hurdle required to enter the Bundestag. But it took enough of the FDP’s votes to drop them out of parliament for the first time since 1949. On the back of a much-increased vote for the CDU, Merkel would become chancellor for a third time, once more in coalition with the SPD. Despite coming in second, the SPD drove a hard bargain and claimed a remarkable share of the key cabinet portfolios.
