Politics · Germany · 9 hrs ago
CDU leaders meet in Berlin to address party’s deepening crisis
The Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Germany’s governing party, is holding a leadership meeting in Berlin after a series of election defeats.
It lost seats in state elections and fell below 20% in several national polls, compared with 28.5% in the early 2025 election.
Party leaders say they want to regain trust and better address people’s everyday concerns, including living costs, security, migration and jobs.
Some CDU politicians have proposed cutting electricity taxes to ease high energy bills.
The party also faces debate over its policy direction, including whether it should become more conservative and how it should deal with the far-right Alternative for Germany and the Left party.
The election results are also putting strain on the CDU’s coalition with the Social Democrats.
Party leaders Friedrich Merz and Franziska Hoppermann are due to present the meeting’s results on Monday, but the party says the work will be a longer process.
The CDU is holding a leadership meeting in Berlin to seek a response to a deepening political crisis.
The party has lost three state elections and is polling below 20 percent in several surveys.
Secretary-General Franziska Hoppermann said the meeting would begin a process rather than produce a quick fix.
The CDU is considering policy changes, including ways to address living costs, security, migration and jobs.
The election fallout is also increasing tensions within Germany’s governing coalition of the CDU/CSU and SPD.
- Who
- CDU leaders, including party leader Friedrich Merz and Secretary-General Franziska Hoppermann.
- What
- They are meeting to discuss how the party can respond to its crisis.
- When
- The meeting began on October 11, 2026; results are due to be presented on Monday afternoon.
- Where
- The Konrad-Adenauer-Haus in Berlin.
- Why
- The CDU has lost three state elections and is polling below 20 percent in several surveys.
SPD
CDU/Union
Coalition tensions
SPD
The SPD suspects CDU lawmakers in Saxony-Anhalt voted for an AfD candidate for state parliament president, breaking a taboo.
CDU/Union
The Union warns the SPD against cooperating with the Left in Berlin.
nicht die eine Wunderwaffe, sondern der Beginn eines Prozesses, den wir sowohl in der Bundesregierung und der Regierungspolitik als auch in der Partei beginnen
Das macht Vertrauen kaputt, weil es versprochen war.
Wir müssen uns um all die Themen kümmern, die für die ganz normalen Leute wichtig sind: Lebenshaltungskosten, Sicherheit, Migration, Arbeitsplätze
The CDU lost almost 20 percentage points in the Saxony-Anhalt state election.
The CDU was voted out of the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state parliament for the first time and was overtaken by the Left in Berlin.
CDU leaders began their crisis meeting in Berlin.
Merz and Hoppermann are due to present the meeting’s results after further party leadership sessions.
- Meeting venue
- Konrad-Adenauer-Haus, Berlin
- State election setbacks
- Three lost state elections
- Polling
- Below 20 percent in several surveys
- Federal election result
- 28.5 percent in early 2025
- Proposed measure
- Lower the electricity tax for everyone
Sources
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