Germany's Merz re-elected as head of conservative party
Germany's governing conservative party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), on Friday re-elected Chancellor Friedrich Merz as its chairman.Merz was backed by a large majority of 878 delegates in favour, out of 963 valid votes cast at the party's national gathering in Stuttgart.It was his second-best result. In 2022, he was elected with 94.6% of the vote at an online party conference and later confirmed by postal vote with 95.3%. In 2024, he received 89.8%.The two-day conference comes at the start of a busy electoral year for the CDU, with five state elections due to take place, in March and September.In two eastern states, the far right is polling higher than the conservatives.Merz told the gathering earlier that the CDU must "prevent right-wing radicalism from moving back into the state chancelleries in Germany."German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (C) walks past journalists with a bouquet of flowers after his re-election as chairman at the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) federal party conference. Katharina Kausche/dpaGerman Chancellor Friedrich Merz (R) presents his wife Charlotte with a bouquet of flowers after his election as federal chairman at the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) federal party conference. Kay Nietfeld/dpa
