By single-handedly imposing exit restrictions to combat the corona epidemic in March, Markus Söder surprised his CDU rival, Armin Laschet, in the fight for the chancellor's candidacy. He has been acting like a driven man ever since - and is increasingly losing his chances. A comment by Merkur editor-in-chief Georg Anastasiadis.
Markus Söder is a confident and imaginative politician. That distinguished him early on. For example, when he started a 30-year-old initiative to save the Sandman as a CSU youngster. But the fact that 90 percent of Germans would love him one day would have exceeded his imagination. Only the Chancellor is more popular today than Bavaria's prime minister. Their term of office is coming to an end after 15 years, and Armin Laschet, whom many in the CDU consider to be the designated successor, is increasingly nervous about corona politics, driven by Söder. An audience of millions was able to see this on Sunday evening at Anne Will's. It is therefore no wonder that the chancellor candidate debate is increasingly looking towards Söder. As a Beutebayer, the Franke to the north of the Weißwurst Equator is much less rejected than the Paradebayern Strauss and Stoiber once were.
It's going for the 53-year-old: with the promising prime minister candidate from Baden-Württemberg, Susanne Eisenmann, a CDU Grandin has now spoken out for him for the first time. With it, parts of the previous Merz warehouse overflow to Söder. Eisenmann hopes to benefit from the Söder bonus in the state elections in March. If further CDU district heads, who are usually also members of the Bundestag, also come to the conclusion that their mandates are easier to win with a top candidate Söder, it will be tight for Laschet. Especially since the Chancellor no longer holds her protective hand over the man who once most enthusiastically applauded her. Merkel resented Laschet's course of easing his corona, but also has political reasons: The weaker Laschet's position in the CDU and the more uncertain his ambition as Chancellor, the stronger Merkel will remain in the remaining 18 months of her tenure.
Söder still shows no public interest in the candidacy. But anyone who knows Söder knows about his ambition - and about his nerves, which resemble wire cables. His predecessor Horst Seehofer already felt it brutally. And it was carved from harder wood than Armin Laschet.
