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reThe CDU party digital congress with the election of the NRW Prime Minister Armin Laschet as the new president also occupies commentators in Europe over the weekend. Here is a selection of voices.
“NZZ am Sonntag” (Switzerland): success of Merkel’s preferred candidate
Angela Merkel has made her ideal candidate for the position of party chairman and possibly also her own successor as chancellor for the second time. The indirect electoral recommendation of the head of the popular government did not cease to take effect in the congress of the CDU digital party. (…)
Laschet’s election is also a reflection of the German state of mind. There is no urgent desire for political change. Most Germans want to be ruled from the center and in the simplest possible way. Laschet represents this course. Of course, it remains to be seen if this will lead him to the Chancellery after the federal elections in September. If the new head of the CDU, previously perceived as weak in leadership, does not rise significantly in polls, the chancellor candidacy runs to Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder of the sister party CSU. This is cut to the center and to the consensus like Laschet, but stronger. “
“Sunday Times” (Great Britain): “It is not certain that Laschet is a candidate for chancellor”
“The election of Armin Laschet as president of the CDU is a reminder that the term of Europe’s most consistent and powerful politician is coming to an end. Angela Merkel, federal chancellor since 2005, will retire from politics in September, when the general elections are held. (…) It is not certain that Laschet is also a candidate for chancellor. Other CDU politicians, including the popular Health Minister Jens Spahn, could prevail.
Life after ‘Mutti’ will be different. He was right about Donald Trump’s reservation. And under another German head of government, a trade deal between the UK and the EU would have been more difficult to achieve. His successor should respond to longstanding US demands to shoulder a greater share of the Western defense burden. An even more difficult issue, and this is linked to criticism of his mandate, is the question of whether the country’s economic interests should prevail over human rights in relations with China. You should not “.
“Rzeczpospolita” (Poland): “Laschet is the lowest risk option”
“Armin Laschet at the head of the CDU – that was the least risky option. You won’t bury Merkel’s legend, and it will be easier for you to forge different coalitions. Laschet’s victory was not overwhelming. But it was enough to banish the specter of an upside-down party and a drastic right-wing turn, and also the toppling of the Merkel monument by the ambitious Merz, whom she had humiliated for years.
Laschet will not start a revolution. She has similar characteristics to Merkel, who led the CDU for almost two decades and went through many twists and turns to stay in the middle and maintain a strong coalition-building ability. This is very important in the year of the general election. As the only one of the three candidates for the CDU presidency, Laschet can form a coalition with both the Greens, who are gaining influence, and with the FDP. “
“Sunday newspaper” (Switzerland): Merz gets Laschet into trouble
“Given the adjusted result, which divided the party into two parts as in 2018, after Laschet’s election, the officials called for unity in unison. At the party congress, Merz showed how difficult this could be. Instead of being elected to the Presidium as Röttgen and having to agree to cooperate, the loser turned him down again.
In return, the 65-year-old brazenly urged the party’s new chairman to appoint him economy minister for the government who will remain in office until the fall. Of course, Merkel would first have to fire Peter Altmaier, one of her closest confidants.
The demand, disguised by Merz as an ‘offer’, was not only an affront to the speech of his intimate enemy Merkel, but also puts the new party president in trouble: if he pushes Merz into the cabinet, he gets into serious conflict. with the popular chancellor. If you don’t, your followers will resent it. “
“El País” (Spain): Good news for Germany and Europe
“The CDU has elected moderate Armin Laschet as president. With the bewilderingly tight decision in favor of a conservative center, who is the natural successor to Chancellor Angela Merkel, Germany’s most powerful party and the most important conservative force in Europe rejected the experiments and allayed fears associated with a possible victory. by Friedrich Merz.
Merz, as a veteran of the party’s rights, advocated a turn toward a harder line. Merkel, however, made Germany the anchor of Europe and ensured stability on the basis of political restraint. Had Merz been elected, it would have meant a moment of uncertainty for the EU leadership. This seems to have been avoided for the time being with the Laschet election.
Trumpism has shown that democracies need strong and moderate conservative parties. Merkel has managed, with pragmatism and determination, to defend an unshakable core of values that makes stability and consensus possible. His successor will have a hard time. But moderation will increase your chances. “
