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Jens Spahn
Photo: Christian Thiel / imago images / Christian Thiel
In the candidacy for the party chairmanship of the CDU, Jens Spahn lets his party colleague Armin Laschet go first and joins him as a team.
Behind the scenes, however, the Federal Minister of Health is apparently pursuing further goals of his own.
According to SPIEGEL information, Jens Spahn sounded out his chances for a candidate for chancellor in the coming year at the end of 2020.
As half a dozen CDU members confirm, Spahn made phone calls to members of the state parliament, parliamentary group colleagues and state officials in order to find out their attitude towards a possible candidate for chancellor, also with reference to his own poll status as the most popular politician in Germany.
According to SPIEGEL information, Spahn had previously tried to persuade his team partner Laschet to give up the candidacy in his own favor.
Not only young MPs, but also party vice-president Volker Bouffier is said to have brought the idea of a possible role reversal into play with Laschet.
However, this refused.
Spahn himself was open to the idea of changing roles in at least one internal meeting of a group of Union MPs shortly before Christmas.
At the request of a supporter, according to participants, he said he would sleep over it again over Christmas.
A spokesman for Spahn's ministry announced: “The minister is in constant contact with party members.
Of course, it is also about the mood before the party congress, the support for the team with Armin Laschet and the best line-up of the CDU and CSU for the election year. "
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