The CDU party leader has to accept a setback in Germany’s smallest state.
(Photo: dpa)
Friedrich Merz was not up for election in Saarland. But on Sunday he got his first scratch. The expectations of the new CDU party leader were huge, and they have not been fulfilled.
There was no sign of a Merz bonus. His CDU has literally crashed in the smallest area of the republic. No wonder that in the last few weeks no one from the top of the federal government has been on site. Neither does Merz.
In addition, CDU Prime Minister Tobias Hans was not able to use his official bonus. While his predecessor Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer was a serial winner in state elections, her political legacy remained pale.
Finally, he tried to score points with his video in front of a gas station, in which he fought for relief for drivers. But the action fell on his feet in the end. Citizens can distinguish between populism and serious government action.
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Such political acts of desperation never bring anything in the end, but are always the harbingers of defeat. In addition, the traffic light with its relief package had taken the wind out of the sails of the opposition in the federal government and thus also of Tobias Hans. Hans in misfortune, you could say.
In addition, his SPD counter-candidate, Anke Rehlinger, has built herself up politically over the years. Far beyond her own SPD camp, she has the image of a doer. She put in a dream result.
Read more about the Saarland election:
It also benefited from the dismantling of the Left Party under Oskar Lafontaine. Things could not have gone better for Chancellor Olaf Scholz: his SPD, which has been declared dead for over a year, seems more alive than ever. In the long-distance duel with his Christian Democratic rival Friedrich Merz, it is now 1-0.
There were disappointments for Scholz’s traffic light partners in Saarland. The Greens have been at odds there for years. It has not yet been forgotten that they were unable to run in the federal elections because the dispute over the party’s internal quota for women escalated into a leadership dispute. Saarland has traditionally been difficult terrain for the FDP.
As usual, on Sunday evening in Berlin, the election losers pointed out that it was a regional election. But it is of national importance. Just remember how the Schulz train derailed more and more in 2017 after the Saarland elections. Nervousness will increase, especially among the CDU in Kiel and Düsseldorf.
More: In search of the opposition role: There is initial criticism of Merz in the CDU