HAMBURG—Germany’s Christian Democrats elected Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer on Dec. 7 to replace Angela Merkel as party leader, a decision that moves her into the pole position to succeed Europe’s most influential leader as chancellor.
Kramp-Karrenbauer, 56, is Merkel’s protege and was the continuity candidate favored by the party elite. She won the leadership with 517 votes of 999 votes cast by delegates. Her rival, Friedrich Merz, won 482 votes in a run-off.
A former state premier in Saarland, where she led a three-way coalition, Kramp-Karrenbauer has a reputation for uniting support across the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and a talent for striking alliances with other parties.
Sometimes dubbed “mini Merkel”, Kramp-Karrenbauer is admired by the CDU upper echelons for her appeal across the party.
“I have read a lot about what I am and who I am: ‘mini’, a copy, simply ‘more of the same’. Dear delegates, I stand before you as I am and as life made me and I am proud of that,” Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a passionate speech to the congress.
Playing up her experience in regional government, she added to cheers and loud applause, “I learned what it is to lead—and above all learned that leadership is more about being strong on the inside than being loud on the outside.”
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer is congratulated by German Chancellor Angela Merkel after being elected as the party leader during the Christian Democratic Union party congress in Hamburg, Germany, on Dec. 7, 2018. (Reuters/Fabrizio Bensch)Merkel said in October she would step down as party chief but remain chancellor, an effort to manage her exit after a series of setbacks since her divisive decision in 2015 to keep German borders open to refugees fleeing war in the Middle East.
There was jubilation as the result of the run-off was announced. A tearful Kramp-Karrenbauer thanked her rivals and invited them to share the stage with her in a show of party unity, which delegates applauded.
Earlier, an emotional Merkel bowed out as party leader, telling the congress, “It has been a great pleasure for me, it has been an honor.”
Prior to the vote, one senior CDU official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said many delegates were undecided before the congress and could be swayed by how the candidates presented themselves on the day.
Kramp-Karrenbauer has differentiated herself from Merkel on social and foreign policy by voting in favor of quotas for women on corporate boards and taking a tougher line on Russia.
She told Reuters that Europe and the United States should consider blockading Russian ships over the Ukraine crisis.
But on what lies ahead for the CDU, Kramp-Karrenbauer said when campaigning, “I have no particular recipe.”
During the campaign, she took a more cautious stance on the future of Europe than Merz, who said Germany should “contribute more” to the European Union as it benefits from a euro common currency that is “too weak for our economy.”
Last month, Kramp-Karrenbauer told a business conference, “With every wish to take Europe forward with a German-French nucleus, the proposals must always fit with German interests.”
Party insiders say she gets on well with Merkel. “The chemistry is good,” said one senior CDU official.
By Paul Carrel and Madeline Chambers
