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Bloomberg
Bavaria Premier Markus Soeder presented himself as a force for change who can revive the fortunes of Germany’s conservatives as he stepped up his bid to follow Chancellor Angela Merkel at the top of the bloc’s election ticket.
His rival for the candidacy in September’s national vote, Armin Laschet, responded by saying that Soeder changes his views a little too easily, accusing him of opportunism and lacking principle, according to officials present at a private meeting with lawmakers. The battle to claim mantle of Merkel’s successor is going down to the wire with the two contenders exchanging increasingly barbed attacks that have alarmed senior officials in their alliance. Both said the matter must be settled by Friday.
Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party led by Soeder have seen their poll numbers tumble amid mounting concern over the government’s handling of the pandemic. Merkel is worried that the spectacle of a public brawl between the bloc’s two leading figures will do further damage to its standing, according to a person familiar with her thinking.