Friedrich Merz

As opposition leader, Merz pressed Olaf Scholz to authorise delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine and accused him of playing on fears of war. As late as April 2025, before becoming Chancellor, he said he remained open to deliveries coordinated with allies. Once in office, he sharply reduced communications on the matter and declared in March 2026 that delivery was no longer necessary.

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Alongside Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Merz repeated a target under which approximately 80% of Syrians living in Germany could return to Syria within three years. Economists, politicians and integration specialists disputed the realism and social consequences of such a large-scale departure.

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After supporting Israeli strikes against Iran in 2025, Merz refused German military participation in the new US–Israeli war in 2026 and increasingly criticised the absence of an American exit strategy. On 27 April, he declared that Iran was 'humiliating' the United States in negotiations; Donald Trump responded publicly.

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Merz's remarks about Germany's low number of working hours were widely interpreted as accusing Germans of not working enough. The uproar came as his approval fell to approximately 16% in DeutschlandTREND, described by Reuters as the lowest recorded for a German Chancellor.

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Merz criticised high sickness absence and advocated abolishing telephone sick notes and requiring certification from the first day as part of labour reforms. Doctors and social organisations disputed the measure's effectiveness and pointed out that part of the statistical increase resulted from improved digital recording.

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A reshuffle triggered by Jens Spahn's resignation expanded as Merz changed several posts, notably removing Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder and appointing associates to key positions. CDU officials, particularly in Rhineland-Palatinate, condemned inadequate consultation, and Reuters reported increasing pressure on his leadership.

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Merz maintained that future abolition of unreduced early retirement after 45 years of contributions was the 'heart of the reform', despite opposition from several eastern CDU state premiers, SPD officials and social organisations. The issue became another test of coalition and CDU cohesion.

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The AfD won almost 44% in Saxony-Anhalt's election, finishing far ahead of the CDU, which suffered a historic result. Reuters reported that 87% of voters surveyed in the state were dissatisfied with Merz's leadership. The defeat renewed CDU debate over his AfD strategy, communications and ability to revive the economy.

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The Ifo Institute estimated that more than one-third of additional borrowing in 2025 under the constitutional defence and security exemption had, in economic terms, enabled financing of expenditure that did not correspond to a genuine increase in defence spending. The analysis fuelled accusations of circumventing the reform's purpose under Merz.

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Shared responsibility

Following the AfD's victory in Saxony-Anhalt, Merz accused the far-right party in the Bundestag of promoting, under the concept of 'remigration', a policy that he argued would amount to 'ethnic cleansing'. The AfD rejected the description and announced plans to bring a defamation action.

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Weeks before the federal elections, Merz submitted a resolution tightening migration policy and maintained the vote knowing the AfD could provide the majority. The non-binding motion passed by 348 votes to 345 with far-right support, representing the first major symbolic breach of the parliamentary firewall.

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The day after his election victory, Merz invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Germany and said he wanted to find ways for him to enter and leave without being arrested, despite the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court. The promise prompted debate about Germany's obligations as a party to the Rome Statute.

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The CDU/CSU submitted a parliamentary question comprising 551 items about 17 organisations, including Omas gegen Rechts, Campact, BUND, Foodwatch and Netzwerk Recherche, several of which had taken part in protests against the AfD and the Union's migration strategy. The SPD, Greens, Die Linke and targeted organisations condemned an attempt to intimidate civil society.

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After campaigning to defend the constitutional debt brake, Merz negotiated, just days after the election, a reform allowing a €500 billion infrastructure fund and a very broad exemption for defence expenditure. The reform was adopted by the outgoing Bundestag before the new chamber took office, fuelling accusations of electoral deception.

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The Merz government ordered tighter border turnbacks, including for certain people seeking asylum. The Berlin Administrative Court ruled the immediate return of three Somalis to Poland unlawful without applying the Dublin procedure, weakening the policy's legal footing.

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Shared responsibility

At the G7, Merz supported Israeli strikes against Iran's nuclear programme and, in an interview, repeated the expression 'Drecksarbeit' to say that Israel was doing this 'dirty work' for the West. The phrase drew criticism even within the coalition and renewed debate over international law and the Chancellor's tone.

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Merz supported the decision to stop automatically flying the rainbow flag at the Bundestag for Berlin Pride and declared that Parliament was 'not a circus tent' where any flag could be raised. LGBT organisations and opponents condemned the devaluation of a symbol of the struggle against discrimination.

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Institutional responsibility

Merz proposed stronger Bürgergeld checks, considered capping rents covered by benefits and increased scrutiny of property size, presenting the reform as a source of budget savings. The SPD, unions and associations considered the ideas poorly prepared and warned that they could increase insecurity without reducing rents.

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The CDU/CSU withdrew its support at the last moment for legal scholar Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf, a Constitutional Court candidate agreed with the SPD, following a conservative and far-right campaign on abortion and disputed plagiarism accusations. The vote was postponed, and the candidate eventually withdrew.

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Political responsibility

Faced with Israel's plans to expand operations in Gaza, Merz suspended new export authorisations for German weapons that could be used there, provoking rebellion within his camp's conservative wing. After the ceasefire, Berlin announced that the restriction would be lifted from 24 November, exposing Merz to opposing criticism over the consistency of his policy.

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Merz declared that immigration remained a problem visible in Germany's 'cityscape' and, when challenged, replied that people only needed to 'ask their daughters'. The wording was interpreted as linking migrants, insecurity and threats to women, sparking protests and criticism, including within the CDU. More than 1,500 criminal complaints for Volksverhetzung were subsequently reported in Germany.

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After COP30, Merz recounted that his delegation and journalists had been happy to leave Belém and return to Germany. The remark was perceived in Brazil as condescending towards the host city; President Lula responded publicly.

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As a CDU MP, Friedrich Merz voted against the final version of a criminal law reform removing the marital exception to rape. The frequent summary that he voted 'against criminalising marital rape' is incomplete: he supported an alternative that would also have made marital rape punishable but provided a clause allowing the victim to object to prosecution.

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Following New Year's Eve violence, Merz described boys from immigrant families as 'kleine Paschas', or 'little pashas', who showed disrespect towards female teachers, among others. The phrase was condemned as a stigmatising generalisation targeting Muslim children or children from immigrant backgrounds.

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Federal Police officer and sporting champion Claudia Pechstein delivered a political speech in uniform at a CDU convention, prompting an internal review of civil service neutrality obligations. Merz rejected criticism and described her contribution as 'brilliant'.

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In a television interview, Merz distinguished the ban on cooperation with the AfD at federal and state level from pragmatic management of municipalities where AfD politicians had won. CDU and CSU leaders saw this as opening a breach in the 'Brandmauer', or firewall. The following day and again in August, Merz stated that there would be no cooperation, even locally.

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Merz asserted that rejected asylum seekers remained in Germany and received comprehensive dental care while German citizens waited for appointments. Fact-checks showed that asylum seekers' access to healthcare was regulated and non-urgent dental treatment was not generally available as the phrase suggested. Several people, including a Die Linke official, subsequently filed complaints alleging incitement to hatred (Volksverhetzung).

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During his bid for CDU leadership, Merz acknowledged earning approximately €1 million gross a year while describing himself as 'upper middle class'. His wealth and use of private aircraft, including to attend Christian Lindner's wedding in 2022, reinforced an image of elitism and social disconnection.

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Merz claimed that a 'large number' of Ukrainian refugees were travelling back and forth to take advantage of German social benefits and used the term 'Sozialtourismus'. Inquiries among German states found no indication of widespread abuse and showed that the narrative had previously circulated in pro-Russian and far-right channels.

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Merz chaired the supervisory board of BlackRock Asset Management Deutschland during his lengthy period outside the Bundestag. His role included representing the company and developing its relationships in Germany, becoming a central focus of criticism upon his political return: proximity to global finance, regulatory influence and revolving-door risks.

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Discussing political communications through social media, Merz welcomed a shift of power allowing politicians to reach their audiences directly, promote their interests and retain their own 'Deutungshoheit', adding of traditional media: 'Wir brauchen die nicht mehr.' The journalists' union DJV expressed alarm at the formulation.

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Asked whether a homosexual person could become Chancellor, Merz replied that sexual orientation was not a public issue as long as it remained within the law and 'as long as it does not involve children'. The juxtaposition prompted strong criticism, particularly from Jens Spahn, LGBT organisations and politicians from other parties.

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During the same September 2020 media appearance, Merz stated, concerning the effects of the Covid crisis, that 'too many people are getting used to not working'. The phrase was criticised as contemptuous towards workers placed on furlough or losing their jobs or livelihoods because of health restrictions.

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After leaving BlackRock, Merz publicly described his former employer as one of the first major financial firms to incorporate environmental, social and governance considerations extensively. A Monitor investigation contrasted this account with BlackRock's substantial investments in fossil fuel and highly carbon-intensive activities, while experts accused the company and Merz of 'greenwashing'.

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BlackRock's German offices were searched as part of the investigation into Cum-Ex tax arrangements while Merz chaired the subsidiary's supervisory board. The episode immediately fuelled criticism of his financial background and corporate governance.

At a CDU regional conference, Merz claimed that Germany was 'the only country in the world' to enshrine an individual right to asylum in its constitution. Fact-checks showed that several other countries, particularly in Europe and Latin America, also recognise a constitutional right to asylum.

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Personally implicated

Merz was engaged to find a sale solution for public-sector bank WestLB. Press reports cited a rate of €5,000 a day, including, according to critics, calendar days, and an overall cost approaching €2 million. His professional connections with HSBC Trinkaus also raised potential conflict-of-interest questions.

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Close aide

Merz combined his parliamentary mandate with numerous paid activities and joined eight other MPs in challenging new disclosure requirements for outside activities and earnings before the Constitutional Court. The Court dismissed the applications in 2007.

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Protagonist is the complainant

While a CDU MP and lawyer at Mayer Brown, Merz represented the RAG group in a political context surrounding its proposed stock market listing, including before officials from his own party. This overlap between public office and corporate legal practice fuelled allegations of a conflict of interest.

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Merz championed a wide-ranging CDU tax simplification proposal, popularised by the idea that a tax return should fit on a beer mat. The proposal, involving radical simplification of rates and deductions, became emblematic of his liberal economic orientation but faced opposition from the CSU and the Union's social wing and was substantially watered down.

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At a local CDU meeting in Brilon, Merz called for the SPD-held town hall to be 'stormed' and proudly referred to the twenty years during which his grandfather Josef Paul Sauvigny had served as mayor, from 1917 to 1937. Archival research recalling that Sauvigny had remained mayor under the Nazi regime and made remarks favourable to the new authorities prompted controversy.

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As CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader, Merz popularised the idea of a 'German guiding culture' to which immigrants should adapt. The concept became a lasting feature of German debate on identity, assimilation and integration, drawing strong criticism for its potentially exclusionary nature.

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Directly implicated