Who will be at the top of the CDU in the future should decide at a special party conference on April 25th. Now there is a second official candidate.
- The CDU government crisis is omnipresent even weeks after the political earthquake in Thuringia.
- A special party conference is to clarify who will be Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer's successor.
- However, the hope of a “team solution” on this issue is waning - a battle candidate appears to be emerging .
8:44 pm: Former Union faction leader Friedrich Merz did not comment on a candidacy for the CDU federal presidency when he appeared in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. He only wanted to "make a contribution" to mastering the challenges of the next few years, he confirmed on Monday evening in front of around 170 guests at the CDU herring dinner in Ueckermünde.
Merz described the Hamburg election result as a “disaster” for the CDU. Now the right analysis is important. This means that the Greens are probably the main opponent of the CDU in the next general election. "And I'm looking forward to it," said the 64-year-old.
Merz also advocated "early elections" in Thuringia. The CDU had made a huge mistake there, he said with a view to the election of the FDP politician Thomas Kemmerich to the prime minister. "But we stand together."
CDU: First reactions to Friedrich Merz's candidacy
8:15 p.m .: Friedrich Merz will probably be the next official applicant for the position as CDU chief , that seems clear since Monday evening. Less than two hours after the information leaked, Merz spoke up with a programmatic posting on Twitter - and quickly met with fierce criticism.
"The CDU must be the party of law and order and the rule of law. Law-free spaces and clan structures must not exist anywhere, ”Merz had an employee spread through the short message service. Where such structures exist, they would have to be "consistently broken up, no matter how much protest that triggers", the post went on to say. A clear statement for "law and order". However, no concrete context became apparent.
Video: Markus Söder in surveys on Merz's heels
This is exactly what Juso boss and SPD vice Kevin Kühnert took as an occasion for criticism of Merz - and of his competitor Norbert Röttgen. Shortly after the scandal election of Thuringia and a few days after the Hanau attack, the CDU chose "clan structures" and the "Venezuela relationship of the left as issues to be discussed urgently," he complains. "It can be a cheerful competition."
Three weeks after # Thuringia and a few days after #Hanau, the #CDU chooses "clan structures" (#Merz) and the Venezuelan relationship of the left (# Röttgen) as urgent topics to be discussed. It can be a cheerful competition. https://t.co/SJZNd3qHbm
- Kevin Kuehnert (@KuehniKev) February 24, 202018:34: The CDU politician Friedrich Merz wants to comment on Tuesday on his plans for a candidacy for the CDU chairmanship. In the federal press conference in Berlin he wants to speak at 11:00 a.m. about the "candidacy for the CDU chair", as it was announced on Monday evening in the announcement. The former Union faction leader is expected to reapply for party chairmanship.
CSU does not want to support the CDU's plan for early clarification of the K question
6:26 pm: The CSU does not want to support the CDU's plan for an early commitment to a candidate for chancellor. CSU general secretary Markus Blume pleaded in the "Münchner Merkur *" (Tuesday edition) that the joint candidate for chancellor of the Union parties should not be announced until next year. Regarding the sister party's plans, he said that "it is good that the CDU has a clear road map for how it wants to get a new party chairman. Other questions - especially regarding the candidate for chancellor - do not involve it ."
With this, the CSU general secretary reacted to statements by CDU boss Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer . The latter announced on Monday that the new party leader would be elected at a party conference on April 25 - and that the election of the new CDU chairman would then be a "very clear prejudice for the chancellor candidate".
In contrast to the question of the CDU chairmanship, the designation of the candidate for chancellor of the Union is decided jointly by the CDU and CSU - the Bavarian sister party has a say in this. The general secretary, Blume, now warned the CDU: "The timing is important - and that is definitely not this year anymore."
Merz is probably officially running for CDU presidency
6:19 p.m .: Former Union faction leader Friedrich Merz now wants to officially run for the CDU chairmanship. Dpa found out about this on Monday from party circles. Previously, the federal press conference had invited to a press conference for Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. under the title "On the candidacy for the CDU chairmanship".
CDU chair: clear announcements by Spahn and Laschet on Thursday?
4.10 p.m .: The question of who is applying for the CDU chairmanship remains exciting. Also at the press conference on Monday afternoon, AKK made no specific statements as to whether the favorites Friedrich Merz, Armin Laschet and Jens Spahn will officially run. But a preliminary decision could be made on Thursday in this matter. Because then the top CDU politicians from North Rhine-Westphalia come together for their board meeting, writes focus.de . Observers expect both Spahn and Laschet to indicate at this meeting whether they want to run.
CDU crisis: CSU is angry about AKK's statements on CDU chairmanship and chancellor candidacy
3:40 pm: With her statements about the upcoming election of her successor and the associated “signal effect” for the chancellor candidacy , CDU chief Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer angered the sister party CSU . This procedure was "not agreed upon" and one was "very surprised" about it, it said on Monday from the CSU top in Munich. The Christian Socialists would firmly assume that the search for the joint candidate for chancellor, as in the past, would be the responsibility of the party leaders of the CDU and CSU, who would then be in office.
2:50 p.m .: Following the CDU press conference, SPD general secretary Lars Klingbeil spoke about the allegations made by Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer. "I obviously played a bigger role at this conference," he said. In addition, he asked himself whether he shouldn't have been louder than it became clear that the Union was considering working with the AfD , reports focus.de . He also called for a clear demarcation from the AfD not only to be propagated by Kramp-Karrenbauer, but also to be lived in the national associations.
CDU crisis: strategies of CDU candidates "shock" Greens boss Annalena Baerbrock
2:47 p.m .: Annnena Baerbock , head of the Greens, also addressed the CDU leadership crisis in the press conference on Monday after the election in Hamburg. The differences in the strategies of the candidates "horrify me," said Baerbock. Why is the debate about the CDU presidency in the interests of the Greens at all? Because trust "in politics and political parties was not the best in the past few years." Politics must stabilize and give direction. But the CDU candidates showed no clear direction of the CDU . That is particularly "dramatic", Baerbock continues, because "after the attack in Hanau " people in the middle of us "are afraid and waiting for a political answer.
CDU crisis: AKK shoots against SPD general secretary Klingbeil - "conscious defamation"
2:36 p.m .: In addition to the agenda for the planned special party conference on April 25, CDU chief Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer addressed the press conference following the Executive Board meeting after statements by SPD general secretary Lars Klingbeil that there was an unclear relationship between the CDU and AfD . "We have a very clear stance: There is no cooperation with the AfD, " said AKK. Then she took a verbal blow to the cleaver . "SPD general secretary has been running a dirt campaign against the CDU for a year," she criticized.
CDU chief Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer at the press conference after the presidium meeting.
© AFP / ODD ANDERSEN
"He has been standing for months and claims that there is a problem with the CDU with the demarcation from the AfD." If he has this view, he must ask his party to leave the grand coalition , said AKK. However, he has not yet done so. Klingbeils statements that the CDU would not distinguish itself clearly enough from the AfD, the CDU leader can only be seen as " deliberate defamation and dirt campaign".
2.20 p.m .: CDU boss Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer announced at the press conference on Monday afternoon that the potential candidates for her successor, Friedrich Merz, Armin Laschet and Jens Spahn, would like to say "quickly this week" whether they would like to join the CDU - Preside as a candidate. Because so far only Norbert Röttgen has officially announced his candidacy for the CDU chairmanship. "The declared and potential applicants with whom I spoke spoke very clearly in a personal conversation with me that they would respect any result of the party conference ," said AKK. Regardless of the outcome of the special party congress, they will continue to make a visible contribution to the CDU's future work.
CDU crisis: new CDU chief is also to become candidate for chancellor
2:07 p.m .: At the press conference following the CDU presidium meeting on Monday morning, outgoing CDU leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer informed about the latest developments in the search for her successor. As previously announced, she explained that a new CDU chair should be elected at a one-day special party conference on April 25 in Berlin . "For us, this is also a clear signal for the candidate for chancellor, " she continued. In addition, any vacant positions on the CDU federal executive board and in the executive committee are to be filled at the party conference on April 25. The election of the entire Presidium and Board of Directors should only take place at the regular CDU party conference in December.
Update at 1:47 p.m .: The press conference of CDU chief Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and Hamburg's top candidate Marcus Weinberg is apparently delayed. It was originally scheduled for 1.30 p.m. following the CDU Presidium meeting, but so far the two politicians have not yet appeared before the press. Meanwhile, it was said from groups of participants in Berlin that NRW Prime Minister Armin Laschet had once again campaigned in his party to find a team line-up in the new election to the party leadership.
CDU crisis: Laschet considers the situation to be "serious" and emphasizes the importance of personal discussions
Laschet further emphasized that the situation of the CDU was serious and that it was right in this situation to take the time for personal talks and do everything possible to get a team line-up. The Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia also recalled that this was also decisive for the election victory in 2017 in the line-up of the North Rhine-Westphalian CDU together with Karl-Josef Laumann from the workers' wing after the devastating electoral defeat in 2012. Laschet had a lot of approval for his statements at the presidium meeting received, it said from groups of participants.
First report from February 24, 2020:
Berlin - After the political earthquake in the Thuringian prime minister election, the federal CDU is still in crisis. Party leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer announced her resignation in early February. So far, it is still completely open who will become her successor.
CDU crisis: Armin Laschet, Friedrich Merz and Jens Spahn are favorites for the CDU executive chair
The favorites for her successor are NRW Prime Minister Armin Laschet * , Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn * and the former chairman of the CDU parliamentary group Friedrich Merz * . Foreign politician Norbert Röttgen * is the only one who has officially announced his candidacy so far. Although the selection of actually fixed candidates has so far been extremely limited, the CDU informed on Monday morning that a special party conference is planned for April 25 . Then it should be decided who will be the new party leader.
Meanwhile, the CDU leadership is losing hope for an amicable “team solution” for the new election of the party leader in Berlin. Such a solution with previous agreements between the possible candidates, NRW Prime Minister Armin Laschet, ex-Union parliamentary leader Friedrich Merz and Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn would be very difficult, it said on Monday in the party on the sidelines of the board meeting in Berlin. There had been urgent appeals for such a solution in the previous meeting of the party presidium . The only official candidate for the CDU chairmanship, Norbert Röttgen, is said to have played no role in these appeals.
The outgoing chairman AKK and Hamburg's CDU top candidate Marcus Weinberg want to inform about the results of today's board meeting in a press conference in the early Monday afternoon.
#Hello. After today's committee meetings, the press conference with @akk and @MarcusWeinberg will take place at 1.30 p.m. Live here on Twitter or via https://t.co/Ko9ZHJ5Z4P. #servicetweet pic.twitter.com/iWIdgFtSx5
- CDU Germany (@CDU) February 24, 2020CDU crisis: could a candidate for a fight possibly split the party?
In large parts of the CDU leadership there is concern that the split in the party could no longer be overcome if the candidate for a fight again. In 2018, Kramp-Karrenbauer was only very narrowly able to prevail against Merz at a party convention. As a result, she also had to struggle that parts of his supporters were not satisfied with the decision.
But it is not only the CDU chairmanship at federal level that will soon have to be replaced; Thuringia's state chairman Mike Mohring also announced his resignation. The reason, however, puzzles.
After the disastrous results for the CDU in Thuringia and Hamburg: Kramp-Karrenbauer attacks the SPD general secretary Lars Klingbeil - the SPD is supposed to "leave this government".
* Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editors network.