In a move that made news throughout Europe this weekend — not to mention in the U.S. — the Christian Democratic Party (CDU) rejected two candidates close to former Chancellor Angela Merkel and resoundingly chose as their new leader conservative stalwart Friedrich Merz.
The triumph of Merz was a strong sign that, in opposition to the ruling Social Democrats (SPD) of newly-minted Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the CDU will move decidedly to the right of the centrist Merkel.
Much like Ronald Reagan, who secured the Republican nomination for president in 1980 at age 69 and after two failed attempts, Merz, 66, had lost two heart-breakingly close bids for the CDU chairmanship in 2018 and ’21.
Merz, attorney and former Member of the German Bundestag (parliament), seeks to restore the CDU as the party of "law and order," liberal economic reform, and, perhaps most significantly, "national identity" — a not-so-subtle slap at Merkel’s controversial decision to admit to Germany 1.7 million refugees between 2015-19.
"Perhaps at last the German conservatives are waking up to the importance of the nation-state with secure borders," Nigel Farrage, father of the United Kingdom’s Brexit, told Newsmax following Merz’s win.
The newly-elected CDU leader coined the phrase "leitkultur," meaning "the dominant German culture," which he said immigrants must embrace to remain in Germany.
"In times of migration and globalization, national identity and traditional values must have a firm place in our thoughts and actions," Merz declared in 2018.
In winning the party helm, the longtime Merkel antagonist demolished two close associates of the former chancellor (who stepped down this year after a record 16 years in power).
"I would not call Merz’s election a repudiation of Merkel — rather, it’s more like a departure from her," Martin Klingst of the venerable German publication Die Zeit told Newsmax. "She’s still very popular among CDU members, and I’m pretty sure if she had run again she would have been elected a fourth time.
"Nevertheless, history teaches us if a still popular party leader or chancellor departs, especially after a devastating election, party members look for a different kind of leader, [they] are in search for their political identity, and often choose someone who is different from his or her predecessor."
Klingst added, "It’s more like saying: ‘Merkel was Merkel, and she was good and successful. But after our party has badly lost the election, we have to look for a new strategy and a new kind of leader who’s not a replica of the old."
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
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