Friedrich Merz is once again the loser.
He has offered the new CDU chairman, Armin Laschet, to become Minister of Economic Affairs - it is not just a party colleague who finds his approach “quite weird”.
At the
33rd party congress of the
CDU
, 1001 delegates elected a new chairman.
Friedrich Merz
lost in the runoff election against
Armin Laschet
with 466 to 521 votes.
He offered election winner
Laschet
to become
Minister of Economic Affairs
, whereupon
Chancellor Merkel
intervened.
This news ticker is updated regularly.
Update from January 17, 5:16 p.m.: Friedrich Merz
has lost the fight for the
CDU party
leadership
.
Above all for his demand
to become
Minister of Economic Affairs
with immediate effect
, he now has to face severe criticism.
Even among its supporters, the move causes incomprehension.
"The time for an offer to take over a government office was surprising, to say the least, so it now seems quite weird," admitted
Lower Saxony CDU boss
Bernd Althusmann
to the
editorial network Germany
.
"I am not happy that the impression is currently being created or possibly should arise that he is more concerned with his person," explained
Althusmann
and asked
Merz for
more team spirit.
Thomas Bareiß (CDU)
sees
Merz's
approach after the defeat with
similar skepticism
.
"He's certainly not done himself a favor personally," said the parliamentary state secretary of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology in the
Stuttgarter Nachrichten
.
After all, it was "foreseeable" that
Chancellor Angela Merkel
would not reshuffle the cabinet at the moment.
"I don't know what drove him there," said the
CDU politician
about his party colleague's "not particularly clever" behavior.
Economics Minister Peter Altmaier does not want to hand over his office to Friedrich Merz
Update from January 17, 3:34 p.m
.: He is apparently quite
unimpressed
: Economics Minister
Peter Altmaier (CDU)
has now
commented
on
Friedrich Merz's
wish to take over his office.
"The Chancellor and the new chairman have said their own thing, and they are also the ones who would have to decide on such questions," he told the
Rheinische Post
(Monday edition).
"
I do my job
because the companies, many of which are currently fighting for their existence in this Corona crisis, are counting on us.
We have to ensure that the German economy and companies retain their strength - and so far we have been doing quite well. "
After losing to Laschet: Söder wants Merz to "stay in the team" despite the defeat
Update from January 17, 9.24 a.m.:
Friedrich Merz's attempt to move to the post of
Peter Altmaier (CDU) is
also met with
reluctance
by
Markus Söder (CSU)
.
Everyone agreed that “we don't need any change,” said Bavaria’s Prime Minister on Saturday evening in the ZDF’s “heute journal”.
In principle, however, he would like the ex-parliamentary group leader to
“stay in the team”
.
As someone who has lost a CDU chairman election twice, but only barely, Merz is one of them, said Söder.
And the
K question
for himself?
When asked, Söder again did not specifically comment on his own ambitions.
He will
discuss
the topic with the new CDU boss
Armin Laschet
in good time - at
Easter
or afterwards.
"Those who start too early can also make serious mistakes," he
said, referring to the SPD * and the early nomination of Finance Minister
Olaf Scholz
as candidate for chancellor.
Merz rushes ahead surprisingly: After the presidency bankruptcy, he demands ministerial office - the network responds with ridicule
Update from January 16, 7:34 p.m.:
Friedrich Merz is ridiculed online.
"Today I offered Armin Laschet to take over the post of Minister of Economics" - this tweet in particular causes malice.
I have just offered Armin Laschet to replace Andreas Scheuer as Minister of Transport.
# cdupt21
- Marcel 🏳️🌈 (@ English98) January 16, 2021
"I have just offered Armin Laschet
to replace
Andreas Scheuer
as
Minister of Transport
," writes one user.
Others bring themselves into play as ministers of education or for other public offices.
“Merz probably just didn't propose himself directly as chancellor because he couldn't have reconciled that with his feminist attitude,” writes another user.
Laschet said he had invited Merz to be elected to the
presidium of the CDU
, which
Merz
refused.
“Fewer women would have been elected to the presidium if I applied.
I have decided to forego the candidacy in favor of women, ”Friedrich Merz's team tweeted on his behalf.
Friedrich Merz: No CDU chairmanship, but a minister?
Armin Laschet also rejects him
Update from January 16, 5:53 p.m
.: "That is not due today," said the new
CDU chairman Armin Laschet
on
ZDF
on the question of whether
Friedrich Merz can become the
new Minister of Economics.
After Angela Merkel, he is clearly rejecting Merz's ambitions.
At the party congress only a new chairman was elected.
Freidrich Merz after CDU chairmanship defeat Minister?
Angela Merkel reacts clearly
Update from January 16, 3:23 p.m.: Chancellor Angela Merkel
(CDU) has now commented on
Merz
's statement that she
wants to become
Minister of Economic Affairs
.
"The
Chancellor
is not planning any government reshuffle," said a
government spokesman
on Saturday at the request of the German Press Agency.
Update from January 16, 2:39 p.m.: Friedrich Merz,
who lost the election as
CDU chairman
to
Armin Laschet
, wants to
take over
the
office of Federal Minister of Economics
.
"I offered the new party chairman to join the current federal government and
take over
the
Federal Ministry of Economics
," said
Merz
according to media reports from the
Reuters
news
agency
.
He confirmed the news on his Twitter profile.
There was no comment on
what will become of
Peter Altmaier
, the current
Minister of Economics
and
Merkel
confidante.
Meanwhile, Twitter users make fun of the failed candidate for the
CDU chairmanship
, while others share their displeasure.
Some rate
Merz
's
demand
to become
Minister of Economic Affairs
as so absurd that it is reminiscent of satire.
What can satire do?
#Merz https://t.co/EtWV2qjeMJ
- Mathias Richel 🇪🇺 (@mathiasrichel) January 16, 2021
Others criticize him for his arguments from the
party conference speech
on gender equality.
No offense, but if the best defense to the allegations of sexism that comes to mind is: "My wife and daughters like me," then that doesn't seem very convincing to me.
#Merz # cdupt21 # because of tomorrow pic.twitter.com/i54yRgXNHN
- Volksverpetzer (@Volksverpetzer) January 16, 2021
His explanation of why he did not run for the
CDU presidium
is likely to heat the minds in a similar way: "The
CDU
cannot only be run by men from North Rhine-Westphalia." Fewer women would have been elected to the presidium when he applied.
“I have therefore decided not to run for women in favor of women,” he added.
Update from January 16, 1:07 p.m.:
At the
CDU party
conference itself,
Friedrich Merz
did not
reveal
what he would like to do after his defeat.
Shortly afterwards he congratulated
Armin Laschet
on Twitter
on his victory and at least left a little hint about his future in the party: "Now it is important that we all work together as a team for a modern and recognizable CDU that inspires and wins elections" wrote Merz.
This is not a clear statement about his desired position, but the words "we all together" are used.
So he included.
I congratulate the new #CDU chairman @ArminLaschet and would like to thank members and delegates for their support.
Now it is important that we all work together as a team for a modern and recognizable CDU that inspires and wins elections.
(FM)
- Friedrich Merz (@_FriedrichMerz) January 16, 2021
Update from January 16, 11:32 a.m
.: Around half past twelve, the results of the second round of voting will be announced.
Armin Laschet
wins with 521 votes.
Friedrich Merz has
466 votes
.
Four delegates abstained.
After a speech by the new CDU chairman,
Merz also takes
the microphone, thanks the two competitors and wishes
Laschet every
success.
In contrast to
Röttgen, he
does not
guarantee his support
directly.
He does not comment on his future in the party.
Update from January 16, 11.11 a.m
.: To announce the result, the three candidates are called on the stage.
992 delegates cast their votes.
There were only three abstentions.
380 votes fall on
Armin Laschet
, 385 on
Friedrich Merz
.
Norbert Röttgen is
eliminated and a runoff election follows.
Update from January 16, 10.55 a.m
.: The
ntv
analyzes the speeches of the three candidates.
The conclusion:
Laschet
is ahead.
"I have never heard such a good speech from him," says the reporter.
He is actually not known as a good speaker.
The
CDU politician is also
receiving encouragement
on Twitter
, even “from other camps”.
Röttgen,
on the other hand, was very nervous and addressed many topics in the quarter of an hour, but the reporter could “remember almost nothing.”
Merz
's speech, on the other hand, had the impression of a
chancellor
's speech,
but was also convincing.
Although this strategy failed in 2018.
Friedrich Merz at the CDU party conference: Commentary on the union of values
Update from January 16, 10:35 a.m.:
After the three speeches
the candidates still answer questions from the delegates.
Merz
answers a question about clan crime and his attitude towards the
union of values
.
To
Clan crime
he is confident and motivated to fight this.
Like
Röttgen
and
Laschet
,
Merz
also comes
from
North Rhine-Westphalia
, where the Interior Minister is currently
setting a
good example.
The clans had "nothing more to laugh about" there.
He is not a member of the
Union of Values,
has nothing against their support, but urged them not to belittle the other candidates.
In addition, he is of the opinion that group formation within the
party
should best be avoided.
+
Friedrich Merz applied again for the CDU chairmanship.
© Sebastian Gollnow / dpa
Update from January 16, 10:01 a.m.: Friedrich Merz
appears as the second of the three candidates for his speech in front of the camera.
It is already the second attempt for him to be elected
CDU chairman
.
He starts with the words: "What was that year 2020?"
It is a shame that the
party congress is
not possible as a face-to-face encounter, but at the same time the digital implementation can show: “This is how
digitalization works
.
That is the
CDU
in the 21st century. ”As of today, all other parties in
Germany
would have to measure themselves against these standards.
The face that is elected today at the party congress will
shape
the face of the
Union
for many years, says
Merz
with regard to the general election.
Merz
talks about various problems in
Germany
that
have become clear
due to the
corona virus
, for example in the healthcare sector or in relation to the labor market and the economic downturn.
The
candidate tries to spread confidence that
there will be a good labor market again and that
companies
will survive this crisis.
"Climate change is one of the greatest challenges in the history of mankind",
Merz changes
the subject.
He rejects the narrative that not enough has been done in the past and that time is already running out.
There is still enough time to do something about it.
Merz
is considered to be a representative of a more conservative
policy
, who sometimes also makes polarizing statements.
He tries to counteract this in his speech.
Different groups, such as women and men or entrepreneurs and workers, should not be played off against each other.
He
contradicts
his reputation
for having
conservative views on
gender equality
by arguing that he has two daughters and a wife who otherwise would have shown him the “yellow card”.
Most recently, Merz assured that there
would be
no coalition with the
AfD
in the
CDU chairmanship
.
CDU party convention: Part two started with speeches by Friedrich Merz and co
Update from January 16, 9 a.m.:
In half an hour, at 9.30 a.m., the second part of the
CDU party conference is to
start.
According to the program,
Friedrich Merz
will speak after Armin Laschet.
But the speaking times at this digital party congress are not long at all: each candidate only gets 15 minutes to point out their vision for the
CDU
again.
CDU Vice Thomas Strobl relies on
Merz to win
.
"All three candidates will receive votes from delegates from our Southwest CDU - but I see a majority from Baden-Württemberg in favor of Friedrich Merz," said the party deputy, according to
AFP
.
It will be interesting to see how close the party will be after the election for the new party leader.
Because hardly anyone expects a clear victory for a candidate at the moment.
But the current CDU leadership already called for unity as soon as a result was established.
Friedrich Merz at the CDU party congress: party size wants to vote for the ex-Union faction leader
Update from January 15, 10:34 pm
: Angela Merkel had
asked for
the choice of a "team"
in her greeting at the
CDU party congress
.
That should indicate that she
prefers
Friedrich Merz's
competitor
,
Armin Laschet
.
Den
Laschet competes
in a team with
Health Minister Jens Spahn
.
Tomorrow's election is eagerly awaited.
Update from January 15, 4:39 p.m
.: Bundestag President
Wolfgang Schäuble also
wants to
vote
for
Friedrich Merz
at the
CDU party conference
.
He announced this at a preliminary meeting of the delegates from Baden-Württemberg, as it was called from among the participants.
The background for Schäuble's preference is apparently the state election in Baden-Württemberg.
According to his own statements, Schäuble assumes that with Merz at the head of the federal party you could mobilize more voters in his home region than with other chairmen.
Merz's candidacy for the CDU chairmanship: JU boss Tilman Kuban wants to support him at the party conference
Update from January 15, 4:16 p.m.:
The head of the
Junge Union
, Tilman Kuban, has advertised his dream candidate again.
"
Friedrich Merz
would be good for democracy," he said in the "early start" of the ntv channel.
Kuban hopes that the people's parties would become more distinguishable again: "He would make sure that the margins get smaller."
But Merz will probably not win by a large margin.
The JU boss expects a "heartbeat finale" between Merz and
Armin Laschet
.
At the
CDU party congress
on Saturday, a runoff election between two candidates will be necessary if no one receives more than 50 percent of all votes in the first ballot.
A vote in the Junge Union in autumn 2020 showed that Merz is the favorite of the CDU youngsters.
However, only around 20 percent of those eligible to vote at the time took part.
Friedrich Merz at the CDU party convention: will he get the most votes this time?
First report from January 15, 2:14 p.m .:
Berlin - On January 15 and 16, the 33rd party congress of the CDU * will take place as a digital event.
On this not only the entire federal executive committee will be elected, but also a new
party chairman
.
The candidates for this post are
Norbert Röttgen
,
Friedrich Merz
and
Armin Laschet
.
Health Minister
Jens Spahn is
not
running
, but has been nominated as
Armin Laschet's
deputy
.
A survey by Infratest-Dimap for the
ARD
Germany trend on January 7, 2021 shows that
Friedrich Merz is
currently
ahead with
supporters of the
CDU
with 29 percent.
According to the results of the study, 25 percent would currently vote
for
Armin Laschet *
and
Norbert Röttgen
.
Despite the fact that Merz is ahead, he has lost 10 percentage points compared to November.
Laschet
, on the other hand, was able to gain 10 percentage points.
Further surveys sometimes result in an even closer race.
CDU party congress: Friedrich Merz leads the survey, but loses support
It is currently unclear whether the future party leader of the
CDU will
also be nominated as a candidate for chancellor.
This still has to be
clarified
in consultation with the
CSU
.
According to a survey for the
ARD
Germany trend, 35 percent of eligible voters and 40 percent of Union voters consider
Friedrich Merz
to be a suitable candidate for Union chancellor.
This means that he is only behind
Markus Söder
(CSU)
in the polls
.
Friedrich Merz
is a lawyer and financial expert and comes from the Sauerland.
The 64-year-old already applied at the federal party conference at the end of 2018 to succeed Chancellor
Angela Merkel
.
However, the winner was
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer
, who announced her resignation last year.
Merz
is seen by many as the leading figure of the conservatives.
In contrast to his competitor
Kramp-Karrenbauer,
he wanted
the conservative profile of the
CDU
more strongly
emphasize.
Friedrich Merz: Digitization and energy policy as priorities
Before the outbreak of the
Corona *
pandemic
,
Merz was
very present in the media and was perceived by many as a particularly ambitious candidate.
However, since the
Corona crisis
, it has become less noticeable.
In politics talk shows, he made only a few comments on current politics.
Most recently, he criticized the resolutions of the EU special summit on the EU budget framework and the
Corona reconstruction fund *
.
Merz
advertises itself as an innovator to whom the topics of digitization and energy policy are important.
He also strives to expand the foundations of the party.
In this way, conservatives and liberals should be better integrated.
In addition, according to his own statement, action must be taken against right-wing radicalism in Germany.
He stands for a market economy orientation - also in climate policy.
In his opinion, a climate policy should not go hand in hand
with restrictions on fundamental rights or economic life
like the
Corona
policy
.
A coalition with the
Greens *
however, he does not rule it out.
On the contrary: in June, in an interview with Spiegel, he advocated a
black-green government coalition
.
Criticism of Merz: Legislative vote on rape in marriage
Merz
is primarily accused of inadequate innovation and, as a result, partly of backward-looking thinking and acting.
Many observers also doubt his ability to work in a team and criticize that he is too self-absorbed.
He is accused of still seeking personal revenge against
Angela Merkel *
and of smelling attacks and intrigues against himself at every opportunity.
He was particularly criticized after he questioned his attitude towards a homosexual
Federal Chancellor
when he expressed doubts
: "As long as this is within the framework of the law and as long as it does not affect children - at this point, however, an absolute limit has been reached - this is not a topic for public discussion ”.
He was also repeatedly noticed with derogatory comments towards women, which he dismissed as humor and irony.
In this context,
Merz continues
to be accused of having voted in the Bundestag in 1997 against the law that would make marital rape a criminal offense.
Merz as the future party chairman?
Support from the Junge Union
Although
Merz
has lost support since November 2020, he
is still ahead of his competitors
in the fight for the
CDU chairmanship *,
according to current polls.
Merz
enjoys
great popularity among
the party’s grassroots
.
He will need this in the fight for the post of party chairman, since, unlike his competitors, he is not represented on a top committee.
Merz
is particularly popular
with the North German and East German regional associations.
The
Junge Union
has also chosen him as its favorite candidate for party leadership.
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