BERLIN — There are two likely outcomes in Germany's general election. Neither is great for the country's Greens — even though one would put them in government.

Opinion polls show Chancellor Angela Merkel cruising toward reelection in Sunday's vote but still needing to form a coalition to get a majority in parliament. If the polls are correct, her conservative bloc will have two options worth considering — a repeat of the current "grand coalition" with the center-left Social Democrats or an alliance with two smaller parties, the Greens and the liberal Free Democrats (FDP).

As a grand coalition of the two big parties is generally considered a last resort, depriving the country of a strong opposition, Merkel will at least have to explore the second option — a "Jamaica" coalition, called as such because the colors of the three parties match those of the Jamaican flag.

That might sound like good news for the environmentalist Greens, whose leaders are keen to get back into power after 12 years in opposition. They have sent out strong signals that they are open to joining a government led by Merkel — an option they rejected after holding coalition talks four years ago. Merkel's conservatives, in turn, have made overtures to the Greens.

“The FDP is an ‘anti-party’ — they’re anti-climate protection, against more tenants’ rights and social housing, anti-solidarity in Europe” — Greens party chief Cem Özdemir

But while Jamaica conjures up images of hot sunshine for those not steeped in German politics, it sends cold shivers down the spines of Green party members. Many Greens, whose party grew out of the environmentalist and peace movements of the 1970s, see the business-friendly FDP as the antithesis of everything they stand for.

“The FDP is an ‘anti-party’ — they're anti-climate protection, against more tenants’ rights and social housing, anti-solidarity in Europe,” Greens party chief Cem Özdemir said recently. “I don’t see how we should come together with the FDP.”

Katrin Göring-Eckardt, the party’s other lead candidate in the election, accused the FDP during a party conference on Sunday of advocating for the coal lobby and denying climate change.

And yet the two leaders — both of whom are considered part of party's pragmatist wing — have not excluded ending up in such an alliance.

A Green party appeal to voters issued on Sunday, a week before polling day, harshly criticized FDP policies but also stated that the party remains “willing to negotiate after the election with all parties except the [far-right] Alternative for Germany.”

Deal with the devil?

On the campaign trail, Green activists are even more blunt about their distaste for the FDP and a Jamaica coalition.

“Particularly when it comes to the topics at the core of the Green party such as the environment, the FDP wants to reverse everything," declared Canan Bayram, a Green member of the regional Berlin state parliament who is running for a seat in the Bundestag.

"I don’t know anyone who is taken seriously among the Greens and who would consider Jamaica a viable option. It’s just not on," she said as she handed out campaign flyers by a subway stop in the capital's Friedrichshain neighborhood.

A Green official in the Bundestag went even further. “When it comes to the climate and the economy, the FDP is the devil,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The FDP feels much the same about the Greens — and about forming a government with them. Party leader Christian Lindner told the Berliner Zeitung newspaper he doesn't "believe in a Jamaica coalition anymore.”

But both parties know that, in less than a week, it could be their only chance of entering government. (Theoretically, both the FDP and the Greens might also have a chance of forming a government with Merkel's party alone but that looks unlikely, according to current polls.)

Bayram said the leadership was right to aim for government and, initially at least, was right to keep an open-minded approach to coalition partners. But she said this stance risks putting off potential supporters.

"It's also important to speak about where the limits of common ground are, and at some point back off," she said, sipping a coffee supplied by a local vegetable shop owner.

Old divisions

Bayram, 51, is identified with the left-leaning, more radical wing of the party, previously known as the “Fundis” (fundamentalists), who have traditionally faced off against the more pragmatic “Realos” (realists).

Although that traditional dividing line — which dates back to bitter feuds in the 1980s and 1990s — has blurred over the years, the party still faces struggles between moderates keen to govern and hard-liners more wary of diluting their principles.

"I don't think it's a good thing if people get the impression that everybody gets along with everyone and at the end of the day, everyone will end up sitting at one table," Bayram said. "We do have a responsibility towards our voters that we are clear in our profile and what we stand for."

For those Greens keen to get back into government for the first time since they were junior partners to the Social Democrats from 1998 to 2005, this year's election could leave them regretting their failure to seal a deal with Merkel four years ago.

Merkel herself warned them at the time that they were missing a historic chance, according to her finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble.

“You know, there are moments in history when a door opens but then it also closes again," the chancellor told a senior Green official late one night in October 2013 after the party ended coalition talks, Schäuble recalled. “Today, you missed that open door.”

Schäuble's account is disputed by a former Green leader. But if the door to government opens once again, the Greens may find crossing the threshold even more difficult this time.