The outcome was never really in doubt but everything went as planned in the voting for Joachim Gauck as Germany's new president. Only the LINKE, the Left Party, supported a different candidate – the "Nazi Hunter' Beate Klarsfeld. Now we sill see whether the charismatic ex-pastor Gauck can restore integrity, along with some lustre, to the position that was badly tarnished under the tenure of Christian Wulff. One thing is for certain, Gauck, who describes himself as a "left-wing, liberal conservative", is likely to antagnize many on both the left and right:
Als ausgemachte Sache gilt, dass der neue Herr im Berliner Schloss Bellevue ein unbequemes Staatsoberhaupt sein wird. Aber das dürfte einem Mann in den Genen liegen, der von sich selbst sagt, er sei ein „linker, liberaler Konservativer“. „Ich bin fast sicher, dass ich mich hin und wieder über Gauck ärgern werde“, ist sich Grünen-Fraktionschef Jürgen Trittin sicher,
(It's a foregone conclusion that the new lord of the Bellevue Castle in Berlin will be a provocative head of state. But that is in the genes of a man who calls himself a "left-wing, linberal conservative." "I'm nearly 100% positive that Gauck will make me mad now and then," said Juerge Trittin, leader of the Green Party caucus.)
The New York Times asks whether Gauck can project a fresher, friendlier, image of Germany:
Following the revolutions of 1989, principled leaders like Vaclav Havel of Czechoslovakia and Adam Michnik of Poland reminded Europe where the moral center of gravity lay; thanks in large part to them, what could have been a difficult post-Communist era was smoothed out.
It may be asking too much to expect Mr. Gauck, another creature of 1989, to play a similar role. Europe today is more of a muddle than a revolution, and the drama lacks all romance.
Yet with stressful times ahead, and the old cultural demons raising their heads, a strong voice of simple principle can be only to the good. Germans need frequent reassurance that they are O.K. The rest of the world likes frequent reassurance that the Germans are O.K. Mr. Gauck is in a position to give both.
One additional note of interest: Gauck is moving into Beellevue Castle with his partner Daniela Scheidt, 52, and has so far resisted divorcing his wife of 50 years and nother of his four children. Something like this would be unheard of in the puritanical United States. But Germany's new First Lady is as strong, smart personality in her own right – a journalist in Nuernberg. Der Spiegel has a good portrait of Scheidt.
