The 69-year-old Merz has long been shooting for the top job in German politics. He joined the CDU when he was still in school, eventually leading the local branch of the party's youth organization.

Merz's conservative views on immigration, his links to U.S. businesses — the chancellor is a former BlackRock executive — "and a profile as an old-school outsider who was underestimated but ...

New chancellor, old constraints: Germany’s Friedrich Merz will have a hard time freeing the country from its self-imposed shackles By Mark I. Vail , Wake Forest University Updated May 18, 2025 ...