The game is over for Merz - but the new CDU boss Laschet also takes up his post damaged after the crooked tour with Spahn.
In the end, a third party could be happy.
A comment.
The
CDU
is, perhaps this is the secret of its success, a cautious party.
With
Armin Laschet, she chose
the cautious “Keep it up” and not the riskier new start with
Friedrich Merz
.
But she did it with such a narrow majority and with such energetic help from a visibly partisan party congress management that the winner was already damaged at the moment of his triumph.
In front of the party base.
And the voters.
At
party congresses
, the fight is often hard.
But this was marked by two particularly bad fouls.
The first perpetrated on Friday by the Chancellor, when she did not pay any personal attention to the outgoing party leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, who was once her desired successor.
Suddenly it was freezing cold in the
Christian Union
.
The second serious violation of fairness was committed by the
Laschet / Spahn
duo on Saturday immediately before the first ballot
when the Minister of Health abused an alleged question and answer session for the delegates about a long-term advertising program for his tandem partner that had been agreed with Laschet and the party congress leadership.
The Merz camp reminded the maneuver badly of the last party congress, when a change of camp (rewarded with the post of general secretary) by the then
JU boss Ziemiak
at the last minute was the decisive factor for Kramp-Karrenbauer and against Merz.
The recent accusations of the Sauerlander that the "establishment" wanted to prevent him were probably only too justified.
CDU chairmanship: Armin Laschet has to prove himself as a reconciler and team player
It's a shame that the notoriously underestimated
Laschet
himself
got involved in the wrong game after skillfully playing his trump cards in a clever application speech.
This poison will eat its way into the party.
Spahn's historically poor result in the election for vice-party leader was an initial testimony to this.
The over-ambitious health minister, who already sounded out his ambitions for
chancellor
in the party in December
instead of investing all his time and energy in the preparation of the vaccination campaign, shot himself out of the running for chancellor candidacy.
Whether this also applies to
Laschet
will show success or failure in the state elections.
He will have to prove that he really is the reconciler and team player he promised to be - and not just
Merkel's
last contest to prevent Merz.
Laschet has to make the defeated Merzians a serious offer, unlike in his application speech, in which he bowed three times to the Chancellor but ignored the Conservatives.
If the inferior Merz wing does not find the place it deserves in the “Team Laschet” and Laschet cannot emancipate himself from the overpowering Chancellor, the new
CDU boss will also
fail like his unfortunate predecessor.
Spicy: Merz's immoral offer to join the federal government was immediately rejected by Merkel on Saturday - and not by Laschet.
As party leader in a coalition government, he would actually have the right to propose to the CDU ministers.
But the newly elected boss stood by like an apprentice.
It is quite possible that the torn
CDU
in the end must be pacified from the outside.
In Munich,
CSU boss Söder would
do well to
warm up
for the
candidacy
for
chancellor
.
A comment by Merkur editor-in-chief Georg Anastasiadis