Top candidate of the Social Democrats, SPD, Stephan Weil (L) and State premier of Lower Saxony David McAllister pose in a TV studio at the Landtag regional parliament in Hanover on January 20, 2013 on polling day of the local elections in the central German state of Lower Saxony. The vote is largely seen as a test run for Chancellor Angela Merkel, her rivals and would-be heirs, eight months before nationwide polls. German Chancellor Angela Merkel's party was ahead after the first state poll in a general election year, exit polls indicated, but it was unclear whether its coalition would cling to power.
{"Image ImageDescription": "Top candidate of the Social Democrats, SPD, Stephan Weil (L) and State premier of Lower Saxony David McAllister pose in a TV studio at the Landtag regional parliament in Hanover on January 20, 2013 on polling day of the local elections in the central German state of Lower Saxony. The vote is largely seen as a test run for Chancellor Angela Merkel, her rivals and would-be heirs, eight months before nationwide polls. German Chancellor Angela Merkel's party was ahead after the first state poll in a general election year, exit polls indicated, but it was unclear whether its coalition would cling to power.        (Photo credit should read ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images)", "Image Copyright": "2013 AFP"}