Merz and Schulze respond CDU's full press conference

Sep 7

At CDU headquarters after presidium and federal executive meetings, Friedrich Merz calls the Saxony-Anhalt result shocking and the CDU's worst defeat in decades. He accepts personal responsibility, claims continuing CDU leadership support and rejects giving up, while promising more empathy and better explanations. He thanks Sven Schulze for campaigning with what he calls full federal support, criticizes a deputy parliamentary leader's pre-election conduct and later rebukes the Young Union's attacks while acknowledging his own communication problem. He maintains the need for economic and social-security reforms, proposes coalition talks, acknowledges concerns about retirement after 45 contribution years and remains open to broader tax relief subject to sound finances. He describes the recovery as fragile and industrial job losses as exceeding new firms' job creation. Retrospectively, he defends the March 2025 constitutional borrowing changes as necessary, claims stronger defense and a role in preserving NATO, but admits sustained growth and improved social security have not yet followed and his political credit remains unpaid. Schulze says the CDU has no governing mandate and will enter opposition. He discusses federal issues, tactical second votes, mobilized previous non-voters and failure to turn personal popularity into party votes, and proposes broader party analysis without announcing resignation. He rules out CDU defections and predicts BSW will enable an AfD premier; these remain forecasts. Merz promises Basic Law protections for minorities under a possible AfD government and explains federal authority and state loyalty in migration policy. Challenged about Russia-friendly electoral support, he refuses to weaken Ukraine support, alleges Russian destabilization and defends disclosure of the Leipzig attribution despite tactical criticism. His week-before-last description is retained without a reconciled attribution date. All questions and complete responses remain included. Four unidentified moderator/journalist labels have no person IDs.

Köppel retrospectively recalls Friedrich Merz saying that election results shocked him and had not been expected, and argues that the surprise shows detachment from voters' lived experience. He names Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern together in this recollection. The identifiable shock-and-surprise statement followed the Saxony-Anhalt election on September 7; Köppel's retrospective grouping of the elections remains in the source account. The full September 7 conference in show 366 records Merz's shock at the Saxony-Anhalt result and his connected leadership response: he accepts primary responsibility as chancellor, claims CDU leadership and state-premier backing, rules out giving up and promises more empathy and better explanations. He defends support for Schulze and criticizes internal campaigning against him. Maurer describes the appearance as self-critical but combative while questioning whether trust can be restored; Höhne doubts imminent replacement without a willing successor. These are the statement and attributed assessments, not a resignation or proof of continuing parliamentary confidence.