As if he were the boss, Markus Söder coordinates the CDU personnel problem. The Chancellor aspirants report to him on the report. The rest of the CDU reacts curiously, then annoyed. Meanwhile, there is a funny campaign idea.
- While the CDU is looking for a new party chair , the sister party is holding back.
- However, this is only official. Indirectly, the CSU diligently gives advice.
- What is Markus Söder planning? The possible K question is also in the room.
Munich - Shortly before the 2020 local elections, the CSU put a wonderful automatic speech machine into operation. At the push of a button, the party sends an individual promotional video by Markus Söder . The CSU boss, no kidding, has spoken the 300 most important first names in a studio for hours. The computer cuts a personalized video from it, in which Söder warmly asks every Bavarian, from “dear Adam” to “dear Yvonne”, to think about the choice.
During the election campaign , the intercom is a funny idea. Gradually, however, you could get the impression that the program was being used more extensively. Söder is omnipresent in the CDU leadership debate . There is hardly a broadcaster, no newspaper, in which the CSU chairman does not give advice to the CDU. More quickly! Slower! Common! Söder completed the ten interviews, talk show appearances and press conferences within a few days, an enormous nationwide presence even for him. Important: no interview went wrong, each sounds good, each consolidates its claim to power. But curiously, what Söder himself wants becomes more diffuse from time to time.
Markus Söder and the CDU leadership debate: No better advice from the CSU
Söder repeated that who would become CDU party chairman was, of course, the sole responsibility of the CDU, and no better-knowing advice would be given. Then he gives advice diligently. The CDU must not paralyze the country with a month-long tour of candidates. "I advise that the election of the new CDU chairman should not be put off indefinitely." New personnel proposals every week are not helpful. The CDU must not imitate what did not work for the SPD.
Markus Söder wants to have the key word in the candidate selection. Not entirely excluded that he ends up doing it himself.
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The weight of Söder's word has been evident since February. Immediately after the Thuringian fiasco , he publicly announced the course of the Union ("New elections!") Without consulting Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer or Angela Merkel. Also because nobody took the lead there. When AKK resigned, Söder blew up her long schedule for a successor with a few sentences. He found her idea of linking the CDU chairmanship and chancellor candidacy bold: the CSU would have a say in the K question!
If you look closely, you can see that last week Söder simply took over the procedure from AKK, his colleague . He dictates the schedule, he looks at the aspirants. In several interviews, the sentence that a candidate had to come with modern concepts was not “just like 20 years ago”. That is understood as a tip towards Friedrich Merz. Likewise, the note that the CSU only supports someone who draws a line between the AfD ("an existential question").
It is the appearance of a chancellor . The candidates are therefore beginning to orientate themselves more towards Munich. Jens Spahn contacted Söder. The busy Minister of Health has many friends in the Berlin CSU. He is not so sure about Söder; The CSU boss appreciates Spahn's professional and PR work, but he does not (yet) trust the Chancellery. Jens Spahn continues his advertising with appointments in the Bavarian local election campaign, which he couldn't care less about.
Armin Laschet has been in contact for a long time, it says in both camps. The NRW Prime Minister is currently not making a statement in which he does not appreciate the role of the CSU. Laschet will also be coming to Munich for appointments in the next few weeks. His people emphasize how well the relationship has developed since the end of 2018. For a long time the Merkel man was considered too soft by the CSU, but now it is pointed out that he practices a rigid domestic policy in NRW.
When asked who should become the CDU / CSU's new candidate for chancellor, this Forsa survey reveals:
27% - Friedrich Merz
18% - Armin Laschet
11% - Markus Söder
8% - Jens Spahn
36% - none of them
Running, CDU.
https://t.co/6JQKizl8fC
After some hesitation, Friedrich Merz is also looking for Soder's ear. First he sent emissaries, who put friendly words into the top of the CSU: Roland Koch, the Hesse, and the CSU honorary chairman Edmund Stoiber. The tenor: In the approaching crisis, one had to talk more about the economy; within two months the debate in the federal government could turn completely - Merz was the best. The Sauerlander then called Söder personally in the middle of the week.
Markus Söder and the K question: Can he afford to say no?
But who or what does Markus Söder want? Part of the strategy of deciding early on the CDU chairmanship and late chancellor candidacy is to keep a back door open for yourself. A call to Berlin would actually be too early. Söder is said to be interested in 2025. Then he would be in Bavaria in the eighth year of office, the seeds of his high-tech offensive could already blossom. On the other hand: does the opportunity for a chancellor candidacy for a CSU man really exist twice? Can Söder afford to say no now?
It is said that not even Söder's confidants agree. "My location and anchor are in Bavaria," he always says. That sounds coquettish, but is careful. The lesson from the CSU power struggle 2018 is curiously: Söder is not as risk-taking as you think. He weighs until the last moment before publicly declaring a candidature, only jumps if he sees the landing site exactly. At first he even rejected the CSU chairmanship, he approached the Berlin political scene with caution. In the meantime, self-confidence has become much more pronounced.
But there is currently no security: in the polls, the Union threatens to slip behind the Greens. Then the Union could appoint a Vice-Chancellor or go against Green-Red-Red. A quarter of a percent can decide. If Söder is at risk of becoming the first politician in history to lose the Bundestag election to a Green party, for example Sunnyboy Robert Habeck, Söder willingly leave the candidacy to others.
The next generation: compared to the 39-year-old Spahn, Söder already looks like a senior at 53.
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Anyway: Habeck! Söder observes the green darling with a mixture of admiration and contempt. He thinks he is too vague politically, but envies the coolness factor. Last year he even tried a copy of the three-day beard on Ash Wednesday - but stopped the experiment in the face of less than charming reactions. He only maintains a casual appearance when it comes to clothing - today the tie is an exception rather than the rule.
Söder's reputation in the CDU changes in waves. At first he was considered Hallodri, after a brilliant appearance at the party conference in Leipzig he mutated into a beacon of hope. Finally, you hear a certain irritation about too much Bavarian self-confidence. "If Söder wants to reach for the chancellorship, then please explain it now and don't expect us to play until next year," complained Christian Baldauf, CDU parliamentary group leader in Rhineland-Palatinate. And CDU Vice Thomas Strobl banned "well-intentioned advice" from the Isar. "We in the CDU don't dawdle - but we don't let anyone drift us either."
Will it be Friedrich now? Or Jens? The video machine does not reveal any preference. Söder has spoken all relevant names - Friedrich, Jens, Armin, Annegret and even Angela. Markus too.
Rubric list picture: © dpa
