Among the high-profile guests at the CDU party congress for the first time in years will be his predecessor and long-time party rival Angela Merkel. But the party congress comes as Merz faces pressure over a limping economy, poor personal approval ratings and the sustained threat of the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) ahead of several regional elections. Conservative forces within the CDU meanwhile decry that Merz has made too many concessions to the SPD, Germany's traditional workers party. Many Germans "had hoped for much faster change," political scientist Marc Debus of Mannheim University told AFP. Uwe Jun of Trier University told AFP that Merz -- a millionaire hobby pilot -- "still struggles when it comes to public likability."

Source: The Local February 20, 2026 15:12 UTC