German Chancellor Angela Merkel won a resounding reelection in today's balloting in Germany. That was mostly expected. What wasn't expected was the absolute drubbing suffered by SPD, the labor/left party. Until this election, Merkel's conservatives were in an uneasy, 'grand coalition' with the SPD. Those days are over. Now Merkel's conservatives will form a government with the pro-free market (libertarian) FPD party. Hmmm...hints of things to come?:

Together with the FDP, Mrs Merkel is expected to push for a new era of deeper economic reforms and tax cuts for Europe's biggest economy. Mrs Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the FDP benefited from dissatisfaction over spiralling national debt and stagnant income levels.

The CDU retained its position as Germany's largest party with 33.5 per cent and the Free Democrats jumped to 15 per cent.

The result marked a humiliating blow for Germany's venerable Social Democratic Party, which took just 22.5 per cent.

Predictions of a tight outcome were confounded by frustrated voters embracing Mrs Merkel's case for a stronger hand to deal with Germany's long-term financial problems.

Read the whole thing here, in a non-US newspaper.

Chancellor Merkel's party support actually dropped slightly from the last election. However, the FDP, the pro-market, libertarianish party almost doubled their support. And, the labor/left collapsed. Totally.

More of that please.