Title: Angela Merkel
Content:  Angela Dorothea Merkel (born 17 July 1954) is a German politician and scientist who served as the chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as leader of the Opposition from 2002 to 2005 and as Leader of the CDU from 2000 to 2018. Merkel was the first female chancellor of Germany. During her tenure as Chancellor, Merkel was frequently referred to as the de facto leader of the European Union (EU) and the most powerful woman in the world. Merkel was born in Hamburg in then-West Germany, moving to East Germany as an infant when 
Title: Public image of Angela Merkel
Content:  Merkel joined her party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), a center-right party when Germany was first reunited. She served as the Minister of Women and Youth (1991–94), Minister for Environment (1994–98), and the CDU Chair (2000-2018). She won her first term as a Chancellor in 2005 and won three subsequent campaigns in 2009, 2013, and 2018. For comparison, Merkel has continued to lead Germany through four US Presidents, five UK Prime Ministers, four French Presidents, and seven Italian PMs. Merkel's years in leadership were marked by financial, institutional, immigration, and public health crises. Despite the tumultuous times, she has continued to symbolize stability and sanity for Germany and the world. As of January 2021, Statistica reported 84% approved of Angela Merkel's overall leadership and work as Chancellor Merkel will leave her office with a legacy of consistently thoughtful leadership, giving Germany a favorable position in the new world order, being the first female and first East German elected as Chancellor. The following section will detail Merkel's political image.
Title: Angela Merkel
Content:  She was subsequently elected to replace Schäuble, becoming the first female leader of a German party on 10 April 2000. Her election surprised many observers, as her personality offered a contrast to the party she had been elected to lead; Merkel is a centrist Protestant originating from predominantly Protestant northern Germany, while the CDU is a male-dominated, socially conservative party with strongholds in western and southern Germany, and its Bavarian sister party, the CSU, has deep Catholic roots. Following Merkel's election as CDU Leader, the CDU was not able to win in subsequent state elections. As early as February 2001 her rival Friedrich Merz had made clear 
Title: Public image of Angela Merkel
Content:  Angela Merkel was first elected in 2005 as the Chancellor of Germany and was reelected three times since then in 2009, 2013, and 2018. She plans to serve as Chancellor until September 2021. She has been named Time Magazine's Person of the Year in 2015, ranked #1 for Power Women 2020, #4 on Powerful People 2018 by Forbes, and awarded countless honorary doctorates including from Harvard University in May 2019. Merkel herself earned her first doctorate in 1986 in quantum chemistry. In 2005, she became the first female and first East German Chancellor of Germany. Her nickname “Mutti Merkel" or Mother Merkel reflects her decades-long role as a compassionate and thoughtful leader in Germany. The following article intends to reflect on Merkel's identity, life experiences, and notable events that have shaped her public image.
Title: Angela Merkel
Content:  In the German federal election of 1990, the first to be held following reunification, Merkel successfully stood for election to the Bundestag in the parliamentary constituency of Stralsund – Nordvorpommern – Rügen in north Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. She has won re-election from this constituency (renamed, with slightly adjusted borders, Vorpommern-Rügen – Vorpommern-Greifswald I in 2003) at the seven federal elections held since then. Almost immediately following her entry into parliament, Merkel was appointed by Chancellor Helmut Kohl to serve as Minister for Women and Youth in the federal cabinet. The ministry was the smallest and least powerful one of the three ministries that were created from the old Ministry for Health, Seniors, Family and Youth. In November 1991, Merkel ran for the leadership of the neighboring CDU in Brandenburg. She lost to Ulf Finke; this has been the only election to date Merkel has lost. In June 1993, Merkel was elected leader of the CDU in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, succeeding her former mentor Günther Krause.
Title: Angela Merkel
Content:  the 1998 federal election, Merkel was elected CDU General Secretary, before becoming the party's first female leader and the first female Leader of the Opposition two years later, in the aftermath of a donations scandal that toppled Wolfgang Schäuble. Following the 2005 federal election, Merkel was appointed to succeed Gerhard Schröder as Chancellor of Germany, leading a grand coalition consisting of the CDU, its Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union (CSU) and the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). Merkel was the first woman to be elected as Chancellor, and the first Chancellor since reunification to have been raised in the former East Germany. At 
Title: Angela Merkel
Content:  reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and increase renewable energy sources. Reforms to the Bundeswehr which abolished conscription, health care reform, and her government's response to the 2010s European migrant crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany have been major issues during her chancellorship. She served as the senior G7 leader from 2011 to 2012 and again from 2014 to 2021. In 2014 she became the longest-serving incumbent head of government in the EU. In October 2018, Merkel announced that she would stand down as Leader of the CDU at the party convention, and would not seek a fifth term as Chancellor in the 2021 federal election.
Title: Angela Merkel
Content:  father, a Lutheran clergyman, received a pastorate in Perleberg. She obtained a doctorate in quantum chemistry in 1986 and worked as a research scientist until 1989. Merkel entered politics in the wake of the Revolutions of 1989, briefly serving as deputy spokesperson for the first democratically elected Government of East Germany led by Lothar de Maizière. Following German reunification in 1990, Merkel was elected to the Bundestag for the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. As the protégée of Chancellor Helmut Kohl, Merkel was appointed as Minister for Women and Youth in 1991, later becoming Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety in 1994. After the CDU 
Title: Angela Merkel
Content:   On 29 October 2018, Merkel announced that she would not seek reelection as leader of CDU at their party conference in December 2018, but intended to remain as chancellor until the 2021 German federal election was held. She stated that she did not plan to seek any political office after this. The resignations followed October setbacks for the CSU in the Bavarian state election and for the CDU in the Hessian state election. In August 2019, Merkel hinted that she might return to academia at the end of her term in 2021. She decided not to suggest any person as her successor as leader of the CDU. However, political observers had long considered Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer as Merkel's protégé groomed for succession. This view was confirmed when Kramp-Karrenbauer – widely seen as the 
Title: Foreign policy of the Angela Merkel government
Content:  The foreign policy of the Angela Merkel government has been the foreign policy of Germany since Merkel took office as Chancellor of Germany in November 2005. During Merkel's chancellorship, Merkel has personally been highly active in the field of the foreign policy. She named Frank-Walter Steinmeier to serve as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2009; the office was subsequently held by Guido Westerwelle from 2009 to 2013, and again by Steinmeier from 2013. He was succeeded by Sigmar Gabriel in 2017, who was himself succeeded by Heiko Maas in 2018. Merkel has emphasized international cooperation, both in the context of the European Union and NATO. Merkel played a central role 

Question: Verify the following claims with "True" or "False": When was Angela Merkel a leader of Germany?
Answer: True