#GERMANY: Armin Laschet Elected To Lead CDU Party

[world politics news] 

Ever since Angela Merkel's protege, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, resigned as minister of defense and Merkel's hand-picked successor as leader of the CDU 11 months ago after defying Merkel's ban on working with the far-right AfD (Alternative for Germany) party (the two parties worked together to install a conservative, pro-business candidate as premier), Germany, and its European allies, have been eagerly anticipating the election of her successor.

The wait is now over. On Saturday, Armin Laschet, prime minister of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, has officially been elected to lead the CDU. 

With Merkel set to retire at the end of the year, Laschet has roughly 10 months to convince Germans that he could be a responsible steward, since - as he made clear in his first post-election remarks - "continuity" is the name of the game.

Foreign Policy magazine reports that "Laschet has warned against demonizing Putin for his annexation of Crimea, criticized Washington for supporting rebels trying to overthrow Assad, and voiced support for deepening the relationship with Beijing."

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#GERMANY: Merkel's Designated Successor Quits After Election Controversy

[world politics news]

Chancellor Angela Merkel's designated successor, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, says she will quit her role as head of Germany's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) following a regional election controversy.

The party recently came under heavy criticism after electing a governor in the eastern state of Thuringia with the help of the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) Party.

The CDU's choice for governor of Thuringia, Thomas Kemmerich, won his position only after  AlternativeFor Germany swung it support towards him in the state's legislature.

Kramp-Karrenbauer had come under pressure in recent days over her inability to get the local CDU branch to follow Berlin's guidance not to cooperate with the AfD, exposing deep divisions within the party. She now says she has no desire to become Chancellor after Merkel resigns. She had been Merkel's hand-picked successor.

Merkel, among others, expressed outrage that the anti-immigrant party has supported its candidate. Kemmerich quickly resigned and called for a new election.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#GERMANY: Merkel Reportedly Losing Faith In Chosen Successor

[world politics news]

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s plan to leave office and hand off power to a chosen successor appear to have been put on ice after the she has reportedly decided her successor isn’t up to the job.

Merkel vowed to step down in 2021 and has already handed over leadership of the Christian Democratic Union to Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer.

But sources closer to Merkel say she's withdrawn her support for her apparent heir, citing a lack of faith in her successor, made worse by disappointing election results for the party in this month's EU eletions.

Publicly, she's downplayed the alleged rift.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#GERMANY: Merkel Endorses Key Planks Of Her Successor's Platform; Including Joint European Union Aircraft Carrier

[world politics news]

Chancellor Angela Merkel has endorsed some of the key European reform ideas put forward by her successor to the Christian Democratic Union leadership Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, including a joint EU aircraft carrier. Kramp-Karrenbauer, who succeeded Merkel as leader of the CDU in December, etched out her vision in a weekend response to French President Emmanuel Macron's proposals for European Union reform. Her essay included a call for a stronger EU border force, a pan-European climate pact and a common market for banking.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#GERMANY: Christian Democrats Fight To Restore Credibility After Merkel's Unpopular Immigration Policies

[world politics news]

Saying they had "learned their lesson" about the deeply unpopular, unfettered immigration policies of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, her party, the Christian Democrats, have met in an effort to shore up their image. The party, which now has a new leader, has seen support hemorrhage since the 2015 refugee crisis.

Leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said the party had to prevent any repeat of the 2015 refugee crisis, which saw hundreds of thousands of migrants and refugees arrive in Germany. "We must do everything we can to prevent this from happening again," she said. "We have learned our lesson."

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.