CDU politicians urge Laschet to quit party chair post after elections | Abroad

Elaine Dermuth, MP for CDU in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, does not understand why Laschet did not want to give up as a candidate for chancellor. “A union-led government is the best for the country,” Laschet said at a news conference on Monday. Dermuth, chief strategist at Neubert Röttgen when he emerged at the end of last year as Laschet’s challenger for the CDU presidency, spoke of a “questionable” press conference.

“Hope this tweet is redundant,” the 39-year-old wrote on the microblogging site. “I wish there was self-knowledge. But after the questionable press conference, all that’s left for me is to say: Armin Laschet, you lost. Please be insightful. Avoid further damage to the CDU and quit.”

Christian Wagner, a former justice minister in the federal state of Hesse, thinks Laschet should keep the credit for himself. “We need a fresh start, both personally and substantively.” Wagner believes that Laschet should bear political responsibility for the CDU/CSU’s electoral defeat and historic low.

According to the youth wing of the German Christian Democrats in Saxony, voters have sent a clear signal that they want a government without the union. “As democrats, we have to accept this and take the time in the opposition to refocus on the content,” said Markus Mondlin, president of the Junge Union in Saxony. “One might think that Armin Laschet would understand by now. (…) But it is clear that a few hours of sleep did not help: Armin Laschet seems to live in a completely different reality.”