German voters had hoped that Sunday's much-hyped television debate between Chancellor Angela Merkel and her Social Democratic Party (SPD) challenger Frank-Walter Steinmeier would breathe life into the tepid election campaign that has been likened to a cotton wool fight.
Their hopes were dashed. The 90-minute encounter billed as a "TV duel" between the dispassionate German leader dubbed "Mutti" or Mummy and the gray-haired career bureaucrat was almost over when one of the four interviewers uttered in exasperation: "You're like a harmonious old married couple!"
The mass-circulation Bild newspaper summed up the public reaction to the debate and the general disappointment that there's no Barack Obama in sight on the German political horizon, with the banner headline: "Yes we Yawn!"
The two have shared power since 2005 in a coalition between Merkel's conservatives and Steinmeier's SPD. And judging by the way they avoided attacking each other on Sunday, it is plain that they wouldn't be averse to prolonging the marriage for another four-year term after the Sept. 27 election.
However, Steinmeier, the foreign minister, emerged as the winner on points because he delivered a better-than-expected performance while Merkel was stiffer and appeared more nervous than usual, especially in the first half of the debate, which was carried live on the four main TV networks.
Two out of three snap opinion polls of viewers found that Steinmeier had narrowly beaten Merkel, while one saw Merkel slightly ahead, but the differences were very slight. Most commentators said Steinmeier had come out in front.
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