All eight state premiers from Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democratic Union have issued a joint statement supporting him as criticism intensifies after the party’s poor performance in the Saxony-Anhalt state election. The premiers said Germany needs “stability more than ever” and urged the CDU to focus on restoring voters’ trust rather than debating the chancellor’s position.
The statement said confidence would be rebuilt through listening and political action, according to DW. It was signed by the CDU premiers of Schleswig-Holstein, Hesse, Saxony-Anhalt, Berlin, Saxony, Rhineland-Palatinate, Thuringia and North Rhine-Westphalia.
The intervention followed growing pressure on Merz’s leadership, including calls from some party figures to consider replacing him as chancellor. Bavaria’s conservative state premier, Markus Söder, also publicly backed Merz and called for an end to the internal debate. Söder leads the Christian Social Union, the CDU’s sister party in Bavaria; together, the parties form the CDU/CSU bloc at the national level.
Merz has scheduled a meeting of the CDU leadership for Sunday evening, after two state elections due to take place this weekend. He also canceled a planned trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly debate, DW reported. The state premiers’ statement came as the party prepared to contest elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Berlin.
The government is separately facing pressure over rising fuel costs. E10 gasoline prices reached a record high for a fourth consecutive day, prompting the governing coalition to consider measures that could take effect as early as October 1.
Thorsten Frei, the CDU’s parliamentary leader, called for swift relief, telling broadcasters RTL and ntv: “People don’t need the prospect of relief now; they need relief.” The coalition’s Social Democratic Party is also seeking rapid action, but the governing parties remain divided over how motorists should be supported.