German Chancellor Angela Merkel chose a picturesque small town to launch into full campaign mode for an election in which she is seen likely to stay at the helm of Europe's biggest economy.
Speaking in the old town square of Seligenstadt near Frankfurt late yesterday, the woman affectionately dubbed "Mutti" or mum by some made the case that her conservative government is the most successful since reunification in 1990.
Undeterred by some hecklers, she pointed at achievements in health, education and aged care as she kicked off a whirlwind campaign tour that will see her speak at 56 events in 40 days.
In the enthusiastic crowd of about 1,000 supporters, many waved signs saying "Angie".
"Her speech was extraordinary," gushed one supporter, economics student Christoph Koser, 24. "She manages to engage us in her party because in her programme there is something for everyone."
Merkel, despised in parts of crisis-hit Europe for insisting on tough austerity, is popular in Germany where many see her as a responsible guardian of the public purse.
Pushing her message of fiscal discipline, Merkel told the crowd: "We have seen in Europe what happens when debts are too high. Growth on borrowed money -- that's impossible."
The launch ahead of the September 22 vote came as new data showed the German economy grew 0.7 per cent in the second quarter, helping propel the eurozone out of its stubborn recession.
To many observers, calm and pragmatic Merkel, 59, Forbes magazine's most powerful woman in the world, seems an immovable force, and few can imagine she will not stay in power.
"She has become something like the mother of the nation, in quotation marks," said political scientist Oskar Niedermayer of Berlin's Free University.
"A person like you and me, who has not lost her head like many other politicians, who has the confidence of the people, seems natural and has the image of the carer-in-chief."
Niedermayer said that in Germany, where the jobless rate is 6.8 per cent, the eurozone crisis seems like an abstract threat to many, and that "the citizens believe she has steered Germany through the crisis".
"She is also staying out of intra- and inter-party battles and quarrels," he added. "She has a rather presidential leadership style. She seems unflappable and sober, and the people like that."
Merkel's personal popularity lead over her top challenger Peer Steinbrueck of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has narrowed a few points but remains huge at 54-23 per cent, said the latest Forsa institute survey.
