Armin Laschet wins vote of Angela Merkel's CDU and will lead party into next election in Germany

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Justin Huggler
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Armin Laschet will campaign to be the next Chancellor of Germany - REUTERS
Armin Laschet will campaign to be the next Chancellor of Germany - REUTERS

Angela Merkel’s CDU on Monday night named Armin Laschet as the man who will lead the party in September’s elections to replace the veteran Chancellor of Germany.

Mr Laschet tried to draw a line under the days of vicious infighting with his rival Markus Söder, whose supporters threatened to prolong the impasse by demanding a vote by MPs on the decision.

The high profile feud between the CDU leader Mr Laschet and Mr Söder, leader of its Bavarian sister party, has damaged the Christian Democrats in the polls and handed the Greens an early advantage in the campaign.

The German Green party named Annalena Baerbock as its candidate on Monday. Ms Baerbock beat Robert Habeck, a 51-year-old former academic and her fellow party leader, to the candidacy.

The two leaders honoured a pledge to resolve the issue amicably behind closed doors and announced their decision together.

The contrast with the high profile feud gripping Mrs Merkel’s own party could not be more striking.

Angela Merkel attends a ceremony for Germany's Covid victims on the weekend - AFP
Angela Merkel attends a ceremony for Germany's Covid victims on the weekend - AFP

Mr Laschet and Mr Söder put themselves forward as chancellor candidate and both refused to back down.

After failing to meet a Friday deadline to resolve the impasse, both men travelled to Berlin for late night talks on Sunday that ended without agreement.

Mr Söder appeared to open the way to a compromise on Monday when he said he would abide by the CDU board’s decision.

“Everyone wants to decide as quickly as possible, as amicably as possible,” Mr Laschet said ahead of Monday's meeting.

He called the party board together to resolve the issue after late night talks with Mr Söder broke down without an agreement in the early hours of Monday morning.

Mr Söder declined an invitation to attend the meeting, saying his party had made its decision and it was now up to its “big sister party”.

But his supporters promptly called a meeting of the two parties’ MPs on Tuesday to review the board’s decision. “The board cannot force their decision past the MPs,” one told Bild newspaper.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Andreas Gora/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (11864757g) Green party co-chairwoman Annalena Baerbock introduces herself as Chancellor candidate German Green Party (Buendnis 90 / Die Gruenen) in Berlin, Germany, 19 April 2021. Press conference Chancellor candidate of Green Party, Berlin, Germany - 19 Apr 2021 - Andreas Gora/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Andreas Gora/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (11864757g) Green party co-chairwoman Annalena Baerbock introduces herself as Chancellor candidate German Green Party (Buendnis 90 / Die Gruenen) in Berlin, Germany, 19 April 2021. Press conference Chancellor candidate of Green Party, Berlin, Germany - 19 Apr 2021 - Andreas Gora/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Ms Baerbock, the only woman candidate named so far, may yet beat both the men vying for the CDU candidacy to the chancellorship.

The 40-year-old career politician and former competitive trampolinist has a genuine chance of becoming Germany’s first ever Green chancellor.

“Germany needs a fresh start,” Ms Baerbock told a press conference. “With the Greens there will be a different style of politics, working together and not against each other.”

The Greens are currently second in the polls on 23 per cent, behind the CDU on 27 per cent, but Mrs Merkel’s party is haemorrhaging support and has lost 10 points since January.

As one seasoned German observer put it: “It is the Greens who now look like the natural party of power”.

The Greens are currently second in the polls on 23 per cent, behind the CDU on 27 per cent, but Mrs Merkel’s party is haemorrhaging support and has lost 10 points since January.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by ANDREAS GORA/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (11864702a) Party chairman Robert Habeck presents Annalena Baerbock (not pictured) as Chancellor candidate of German Green Party (Buendnis 90 / Die Gruenen) in Berlin, Germany, 19 April 2021. Press conference on Chancellor candidate of Green Party, Berlin, Germany - 19 Apr 2021 - ANDREAS GORA/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Mandatory Credit: Photo by ANDREAS GORA/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (11864702a) Party chairman Robert Habeck presents Annalena Baerbock (not pictured) as Chancellor candidate of German Green Party (Buendnis 90 / Die Gruenen) in Berlin, Germany, 19 April 2021. Press conference on Chancellor candidate of Green Party, Berlin, Germany - 19 Apr 2021 - ANDREAS GORA/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

A lot can happen between now and September but as things stand the Greens have a real chance of leading a rival coalition to power.

Ms Baerbock was long seen as behind the more charismatic Mr Habeck to secure the party candidacy.

But a series of gaffes by Mr Habeck saw Ms Baerbock surge ahead of him in the opinion polls, particularly among Green voters, who favour her by 52 per cent to 26 per cent.

She also received an undoubted boost from the Greens’ desire to be the only major party to put forward a woman as candidate for chancellor this year.

Two men in their 50s are vying to lead the CDU campaign, while a third, Olaf Scholz, has already been named as the candidate for the centre-Left Social Democrats (SPD).

“If we have two equally good candidates, it cannot be that the Greens prefer the man,” a party insider told Bild.

With two young children, Ms Baerbock is also seen by the party as a standard bearer for working mothers.

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