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The winner of the internal Union power struggle for the candidacy for chancellor, Armin Laschet, does not want to let one sit on him: When asked about the statement by CSU General Secretary Markus Blume that the defeated CSU boss Markus Söder was the "candidate of hearts", Laschet said RTL / NTV broadcasters on Tuesday: “It's me too.” There are “a lot of people who say it's me too.

So we basically have two candidates with hearts. "

In the ARD program “Confess color” he said that after the hard fight for the candidacy he wanted to devote himself to reconciliation within the party.

He now wants to "hold a lot of conversations, reconcile, bring together, also bring opposites back together," said Laschet on Tuesday in the ARD program "confess color".

“The CDU needs that now.” In the next few days he wanted to go to the district associations and seek a conversation.

Laschet pointed out that after his election as CDU leader in January, he approached the camps of his inferior competitors Friedrich Merz and Norbert Röttgen.

"We're standing together now," he said.

He wanted to involve the CSU boss Markus Söder, who lost out in the competition for the candidacy: "He will be a formative figure in this Union election campaign," said Laschet.

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In the interview, the CDU chief paid tribute to Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU), whose successor at the head of government he plans to take over in the fall.

“The shoes are big, of course,” he said.

“You have to have respect for this lifetime achievement,” he added.

"After 16 years Angela Merkel to make a fresh start, no more like this, but still to carry on what is good in continuity - that is not an easy task."

As Federal Chancellor, "you have to have a basic attitude," said Laschet.

“I have.” As Chancellor, he would “try to make the best of this office”.

"This is called democracy"

Armin Laschet also emphasized the unity of the Union in the ZDF program “Was now ...?”.

"I believe that in terms of content, the CDU and CSU, we are closer together than we have been for a long time."

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He protested against the impression that his power struggle with CSU leader Markus Söder had split the Union.

If there are two candidates and then a vote is taken, there is no split, according to Laschet.

"That's called democracy."

But he also admitted: "We have expected ourselves to be strenuous eight to ten days."

There are no talks with the AfD

Laschet also spoke out categorically against any form of cooperation with the AfD after the state elections in Saxony-Anhalt.

“In a nutshell: yes.

That is not compatible with the values ​​of the CDU. ”“ With the AfD there are no talks, no cooperation, no coalition. ”The AfD wants to change the state, partly destroy its basic values.

"There is only clear demarcation, clear edge," emphasized North Rhine-Westphalia's Prime Minister.

He had previously stated in an interview with ARD that he considered Saxony-Anhalt's Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff (CDU) to be of absolute integrity on this issue.

The background is opinion polls, according to which after the state elections on June 6, a coalition could only be possible with the AfD or the Left Party.