CDU plans to delegate ex-chancellor Merkel to Federal Convention — Der Spiegel

In Germany, the CDU of Schleswig-Holstein plans to delegate former Chancellor Angela Merkel to the Federal Convention, which will elect the country’s next president. Der Spiegel reports.

Vote for Steinmeier’s successor

A decision on the successor to President Frank-Walter Steinmeier is to be made on January 30, 2027. Germany’s federal states are currently selecting delegates to the Federal Convention, which will elect the head of state from candidates nominated by political parties.

The candidate of the governing coalition in Berlin, which includes the CDU/CSU and the SPD, has not yet been agreed upon. At the same time, the CDU in Schleswig-Holstein wants to send Merkel, Federal Education Minister Karin Prien, state premier Daniel Günther and former handball player Patrick Wiencek to the convention.

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Nomination from Schleswig-Holstein

In 2022, Merkel was nominated by Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Tobias Koch, chairman of the CDU parliamentary group in the Schleswig-Holstein state parliament, explained the new nomination by saying that the CDU parliamentary group had left the state parliament in Schwerin, so the neighboring state took over Merkel’s nomination.

Earlier, the former chancellor spoke in favor of electing a woman as Germany’s president. In an interview with MagentaTV, she noted that in the 77-year history of the Federal Republic of Germany, the country has never had a female president. The CSU supports the candidacy of Bavarian Landtag President Ilse Aigner. In the CDU, Bundestag President Julia Klöckner, Karin Prien and former party leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer are named among possible candidates. Chancellor Friedrich Merz, however, did not insist that the parties nominate a woman.