Desperate Merkel? German Chancellor unveils child photos as support dips before election
ANGELA Merkel has unveiled the latest weapon in her election campaign - pictures of her as a child.
Merkel's re-election posters feature a picture of her as a three-year-old
The German Chancellor, who is hoping to win re-election later this month, has seen her lead dip slightly in recent polls.
The new posters feature a picture from 1957 which shows a three-year-old Merkel alongside the slogan “for a Germany where anyone can be anything”.
Returning to her birthplace in Hamburg today, Merkel told supporters that despite her apparent lead in the polls, it should not be taken for granted.
Angela Merkel addressed the the Bundestag lower house of parliament in Berlin, ahead of the election
We live in turbulent times. We can't afford any experiments
Germany heads to the polls on September 24 and it is widely expected that Merkel’s Christian Democrat Union (CDU) party will win by a comfortable margin.
However, because of Germany’s proportional voting system, her party will need to continue to govern in coalition with at least one other group.
Germany is currently controlled by Merkel’s CDU and the centre-left Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD).
But the SPD has refused to rule out a left-wing alliance with smaller, like-minded parties Left and the Greens.
Ms Merkel said today: "We live in turbulent times. We can't afford any experiments."
"In these times, we need stability and security, and a clear path, both at home and abroad.”
The pro-European CDU’s policies include the creation of a European Monetary Fund which would be used to support struggling EU economies.
Merkel and Schulz 'disagree' in heated election debate
The SPD is in favour of more integration between European nations and would push for coordinated tax policy and common welfare standards for all countries in the union.
The party would also back a decrease in defence spending and supports replacing Nato with a European security pact.
But an upset could come from the right-wing populist party Alternative for Germany (AfD), which is expected to win seats for the first time.
Merkel may need to ally with SDP leader Martin Schulz
Some polls suggest that the party could finish as high as third.
The arrival of more than a million refugees and asylum seekers to the country has made immigration a major issue for some voters.
The AfD’s policies include tightening up border controls, opposing mass immigration and boosting spending on defence.