The third black-red coalition government led by Merkel is still successful. Its reform legislation should in general have a positive effect on resolving contradictions and promoting development. Affected by antagonism and conflict among the three parties，the grand coalition had to overcome，in the first half of 2018，a number of difficulties. During this time there were even two fully-fledged crises related to the Minister of the Interior，Horst Seehofer，that brought the coalition parties and the black-red coalition to the verge of disintegration；they led to infighting and a neglect of governance. Merkel’s decision not to stand again for the re-election of her party’s chairmanship in the second half of the year had a significant impact on the CDU and the grand coalition government：Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer became the CDU’s new chairman. The second year of the current government will still be fraught with many uncertainties，including the question of Merkel’s tenure as Federal Chancellor，the performance of the party in various elections，and the emergence of new disputes and infighting among the governing partners in the grand coalition government.