In her first major interview since she was re-elected chancellor on Wednesday, Angela Merkel said one of her new government's goals is to win back voters lost to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

Watch video 02:26 Angela Merkel's political path

"Our goal is to solve the problems of those who voted for this party out of protest," Merkel said in an interview with German public broadcaster ARD.

"That means, of course, our aspiration is to reduce their numbers and, ideally, get them out of German parliament," she added.

Read more: Five important demographic facts on the new German government

She emphasized, however, that her government's main goal is to solve the problems plaguing German voters.

Merkel was re-elected for a fourth term as chancellor by a margin of just nine votes.

Although the ballots are secret, the results indicated that lawmakers within the governing grand coalition between her conservative Christian bloc and the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) voted against her.

Read more: Opinion: Germany's government needs to 'win back lost trust'

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Siegbert Droese The head of the AfD in Leipzig was the center of controversy in 2016 when newspapers reported that a car in his motor pool had the license plate: "AH 1818." "AH" are the initials of Adolf Hitler. 1 and 8, the first and eighth letters of the alphabet, are considered a code for Adolf Hitler among neo-Nazi groups.

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Sebastian Münzenmaier As the AfD's lead candidate in Rhineland-Palatinate, the 28-year-old Münzenmaier cruised to a seat in the Bundestag. Münzenmaier made headlines in October when he was convicted of being an accessory to assault in a case of football hooliganism. But because that's considered a minor offense, he is able to exercise his mandate.

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Albrecht Glaser The 75-year-old former CDU man is the AfD's choice for Bundestag vice-president, but members of the other parties say they won't approve his candidacy. Glaser once opined that Muslims shouldn't enjoy freedom of religion because Islam is a political ideology. Critics reject that view as unconstitutional.

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Markus Frohnmaier Frohnmaier is the chair of the party's youth organization, Junge Alternative. The 28-year-old wrote in August 2016 on Facebook that "our generation will suffer the most" from Merkel's decision to "flood this country with the shoddy proletariat from Africa and the Orient."

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Martin Reichardt The former soldier from Lower Saxony once told a journalist that he had no problem with "Germany for the Germans," a phrase that is often used by neo-Nazi groups. He has also collectively described the Green Party and The Left party as "constitutional enemy No. 1."

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Wilhelm von Gottberg The 77-year-old from Brandenburg was vice president of the Federation of Expellees (BdV) until 2012. He wrote in the newspaper "Ostpreussenblatt" in 2001 that he agreed with the statement that the Holocaust was a "myth" and an "effective instrument to criminalize the Germans and their history."

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Jens Maier In January, the Dresden judge railed against the "creation of mixed nationalities" that are "destroying national identity." He has also called for an end to Germany's "culture of guilt" surrounding the country's actions in the Second World War.

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Beatrix von Storch The AfD's vice-chair is an MP in the European parliament and is known for her hardline conservative views. In 2016, she replied affirmatively to a Facebook user who had asked her whether armed force should be used to stop women with children from illegally entering Germany. She later apologized for the comment.

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Alexander Gauland One of the AfD's top candidates, Gauland was widely criticized after suggesting that the German government's commissioner for integration, Aydan Özoguz, should be "disposed of" in Turkey because she had said that there was no specifically German culture beyond the German language.

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Alice Weidel The 38-year-old economist was the AfD's other top candidate. Despite living in Switzerland, Weidel ran for the Baden-Württemberg constituency of Bodensee. She drew criticism for describing Germany's integration commissioner Aydan Özoguz, who has Turkish roots, as a "stain" and a "disgrace." In a contested email attributed to Weidel, she called Angela Merkel's government "pigs" and "puppets."

The friendly faces of the AfD? Germany's new parliamentary representatives Frauke Petry For a long time Frauke Petry was the face of the AfD, and she's one of the more recognizable figures in the Bundestag. But she's no longer a member of the right-wing populist party. Petry quit shortly after the election after falling out with other leaders. Because she won her voting district outright, she still gets a Bundestag mandate, where she sits as an independent. Author: Alex Pearson



AfD protests in Bundestag

Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the SPD took a hit during last September's general election, losing voters to the AfD. The far-right, populist party entered the Bundestag for the first time after earning 12.6 percent of the vote. They are currently the largest opposition party.

AfD politicians particularly disapprove of Merkel's refugee policies and have repeatedly called for Merkel's ousting from office.

Read more: What is the role of Germany's parliamentary opposition?

During the vote in parliament on Wednesday, an assistant to an AfD deputy was expelled from the spectator's balcony after unfurling a banner that read "Merkel must go."

Another AfD lawmaker was fined for posting a picture of his ballot on Twitter, showing that he'd voted against Merkel, along with the message: "Not my chancellor." Parliamentary rules dictate that the votes must remain secret.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel Political evolution Photographer Herlinde Koelbl immortalized the German chancellor in her series "Traces of Power" — in addition to former chancellor Gerhard Schröder and former foreign minister Joschka Fischer. Photographing and interviewing the politicians for the project, Koelbl's long-term study examined how years in office transforms people.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel The pop icon US artist Elizabeth Peyton portrayed the German chancellor for a profile in "Vogue" magazine in 2017. Peyton's stylized depiction of a younger Merkel carried on a theme of presenting strong women characters in her portraits that have also included Michelle Obama, Camille Claudel and Frida Kahlo. Peyton was inspired for this portrait by hundreds of photos of the Chancellor taken across 30 years.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel The humanitarian "We see images of her where she can appear to be a quite bland and almost cold person; but what I wanted to get across was her humanitarian stance," said Northern Irish artist Colin Davidson of his Merkel portrait for "Time's" 2015 Person of the Year cover. That year, the chancellor dealt with "two existential crises," wrote "Time" — Europe's debt crisis and a mass influx of refugees.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel Signs of exhaustion This drawing by Dutch artist Erik van Lieshout portrays the Chancellor with red lips and a tired, inscrutable gaze. It was actually acquired by the contemporary art collection of the Federal Republic of Germany, which was started in 1970 in Bonn. Van Lieshout said he only needed an hour to finish his portrait and that the "mouth turned out to be very beautiful."

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel Revisited by a former US president Angela Merkel has not only inspired renowned artists, but hobby painters as well, including George W. Bush. The former US president — who had never lifted a paintbrush in his life — set out to paint a series of 30 world leaders, among them the German Chancellor, for a 2015 show called "The Art of Leadership: A President's Personal Diplomacy."

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel Political street art Art begins on the street: In the tradition of the murales — South American murals with political statements — Italian street art artist Jupiterfab depicted Angela Merkel geting close and personal with the former Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on a building wall in Athens.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel Satirical artworks Political art can also hang in the museum: Here, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, donning a Napoleon hat, sits on the motherly lap of a naked Angela Merkel. The British artist and satirist Kaya Mar prefers to focus on politicians in his motifs; he has also portrayed Theresa May, Donald Trump and the Pope in satirical contexts.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel In dialogue Bulgarian art students decorated the walls of buildings in the village of Staro Zhelezare — initially with portraits of the inhabitants. Later, there were also politicians who seemed to be in dialogue with the locals, like Chancellor Merkel. The walls have meanwhile also been painted with copies of artworks from New York's Museum of Modern Art.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel One among many Some sculptures of the chancellor are deliberately provocative: "European Citizenship" by Alexander Nikolic and Michael Kalivoda shows a defecating Merkel; while Peter Lenk's relief "Global Players" shows her and other German politicians naked and engaged in sexual play. Unoffensive in comparison, Georg Korner's installation "Transit" (pictured) includes Merkel among 2,600 figures.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel Hipster In his series of images "Hipstory," Israeli illustrator Amit Shimoni portrays the powerful and influential as young hipsters. Trump, for instance, wears a Hawaiian shirt, while Obama has dreadlocks. Merkel is among them, with dark lipstick, a nose piercing and a felt black hat.

In the eye of the beholder: portraits of Angela Merkel Caricature New wrinkles around her eyes and mouth have been appearing in cartoonists' depictions of her, too. The German chancellor has been caricatured on countless occasions in newspapers worldwide — demonstrating that her influence and power go way beyond the country's borders. Author: Julia Hitz (eg/als)



rs/sms (AFP, Reuters)

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