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CDU boss Laschet, CSU boss Söder (in April in Berlin)
Photo: Michael Kappeler / dpa
In the struggle for the Union chancellor candidacy, the CDU chairman Armin Laschet prevailed - but above all there has been a lack of support from the party of the defeated CSU leader Markus Söder.
Even among the Christian Socials, it should therefore surprise some that their chairman has now invited the candidate for chancellor to the start of the CSU program process: Laschet will give a greeting at the virtual members' conference on Thursday evening at 6 p.m., followed by a speech by CSU boss Söder and the regional group chairman Alexander Dobrindt.
"This is a strong signal for the hot phase of our program work," said CSU General Secretary Markus Blume to SPIEGEL.
"Nobody should doubt the unity and determination of the Union in this election campaign."
All 140,000 members of the CSU are invited to the event on Thursday.
The program process of the CSU in the following two weeks is under the motto "Make Germany strong".
The program points developed in this way are then to be incorporated into the joint union government program with the CDU.
It will be unveiled on June 21st.
Most recently, leading representatives of the CSU had given the impression that they even believed they could eventually replace the unloved Chancellor candidate Laschet with their party leader Söder.
The ongoing taunts from Munich caused increasing anger among the CDU leadership.
In view of the weak polls for the Union - in some surveys one has fallen behind the Greens - and their candidates for chancellor, the unrest is generally great among the CDU and CSU.