Previous NextTwo German states choose new legislatures on Sunday, the first major political test of a year in which a national election will determine who succeeds Chancellor Angela Merkel. The weekend votes come at a challenging time for the longtime leader’s party, Geir Moulson of The Associated Press writes. It’s an unpromising moment for the new leader of Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union, Armin Laschet, to face his first big political test. In the last election five years ago, the Greens overtook the CDU to become the strongest party in the state. Laschet says that he and Markus Soeder, the CSU leader and Bavarian governor who is the other serious contender to run for chancellor, will decide on the CDU candidate in April or May.

Source: The Standard March 12, 2021 08:03 UTC