ROUGH CUT - NO REPORTER NARRATION<br/> <br />German Chancellor Angela Merkel cast her vote in the national election on Sunday (September 22).<br/> <br />She walked the short distance from her home in central Berlin to the polling station at the city's Humboldt University, accompanied by her husband Joachim Sauer.<br/> <br />German voters are expected to hand Merkel a third four-year term, but she may be forced into an awkward coalition with her leftist rivals following a surge in support for a new anti-euro party.<br/> <br />Europe is closely watching Germany's first national election since the eruption of the euro zone debt crisis in 2009. Some hope Merkel will take a softer stance on struggling euro states such as Greece if she is pushed into a so-called grand coalition with the Social Democrats (SPD).<br/> <br />But major policy shifts seem unlikely because the centre-left SPD, whose campaign stalled after a gaffe-prone start by its lead candidate Peer Steinbrueck, agrees with the thrust of Merkel's approac
