As the German Christian Democrats (CDU) continue to falter in the worst election defeat in their history in the September federal election, the first candidates for the party’s presidency have been announced. That of Merkel’s longtime ally and caretaker Chancellor Helge Brown and foreign policy expert Norbert Retgen.
Jens Spann, the caretaker health minister, has refused to run for party leader, but the party’s fiscally conservative pillar, Friedrich Mertz, is expected to run for a third term as CDU leader.
As the Conservatives are ready to seek the opinion of their 400,000 members for the first time, many in the party are hoping to maintain its unity.
“The next party leader needs the full support of the party, as was not the case in the last election,” said Armin Lasset, the ousted party leader who will leave in November, in early November.
While Brown appears to be backed by Conservatives in Hesse, many have hailed his candidacy as the latest attempt by Merkel’s camp in the CDU to reject Mertz’s candidacy for party leader.
The battle is expected to be between Reutgen, who was ousted from Merkel’s cabinet in 2010, and Friedrich Mertz, a right-wing politician who has failed in two previous attempts to claim the party leadership.
It remains unclear whether the relatively unpopular Brown, the failed minister Retgen or the 65-year-old Mertz really represent the renewal the party is seeking. “Now the ball is in the court of the party base,” said Paul Zimiak, the CDU general secretary, as the party announced its renewal.
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