Any replacement to Merkel will be even worse.
This is brought up almost nightly.
Germans laugh over the idea of SPD’s Schulz getting the votes. Roughly half of the SPD voters don’t want a win, which would lead to a Green Party-Linke Party partnership.
Most people see Schulz as some bureaucrat out of Brussels.
The rest of the parties have marginal candidates so 2017 is really a waste. Merkel retires (for sure) after this four-year term, and there’s three or four individuals discussed in CDU circles to replace her. All represent a different future for Germany...with changes over immigration.