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epa09547483 Acting German Chancellor Angela Merkel (3-L) looks on her certificate of discharge she received before as she poses with acting German Minister of Interior, Construction and Homeland Horst Seehofer, acting German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (2-L), acting German Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Hubertus Heil (4-L), German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (5-L) and acting German Minister of Food and Agriculture Julia Kloeckner (R) at the Bellevue Palace in Berlin, Germany, 26 October 2021. Following the 26 September 2021 elections, Merkel and ministers of the government cabinet will receive their certificates of discharge but will continue to hold their offices on an acting basis until a new government is finally formed. EPA/CLEMENS BILAN