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Munich (dpa) - CSU boss Markus Söder has accepted the clear board vote of the CDU for their party leader Armin Laschet as the Union's candidate for chancellor. "My word that I have given is valid," said the Bavarian Prime Minister on Tuesday in Munich. "The die has been cast, Armin Laschet is the Union's candidate for chancellor." He will support Laschet without resentment and with full strength. Now it's about standing together. Around twelve hours after the decision of the CDU executive committee, Söder draws a line under the power struggle with Laschet over the candidacy that has been going on for more than a week.

However, it remains to be seen whether this will completely end the controversial debate about the candidacy for chancellor in the Union. The reaction of the Union parliamentary group in the Bundestag in the afternoon and the feedback from the CDU base in the coming days are therefore eagerly awaited. There had been great encouragement for Söder in the past few days.

Thuringia's CDU regional chief Christian Hirte already assessed the vote for Laschet as a “decision against the CDU base”.

The mood in Thuringia and in several other regional associations was clear for Söder as candidate for chancellor, he told the German Press Agency in Erfurt on Tuesday.

But he is assuming that Söder will support a candidate for Chancellor Laschet in the federal election campaign.

"We are now well advised to gather behind Armin Laschet and concentrate on the content."

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In a special digital meeting of the CDU board on Tuesday night, 31 out of 46 voting board members had secretly pleaded for their own party chairman Laschet as candidate for chancellor (77.5 percent).

Only 9 voted for Söder (22.5 percent), 6 abstained.

Söder and the CSU did not put the decision on the candidacy for chancellor into the hands of the CDU until Monday afternoon after a week-long, nerve-wracking power struggle.

The CDU is now deciding this «sovereign», he said.

"We as the CSU and I also respect every decision."

But critical tones came from the CSU on Tuesday.

The process leaves “quite a few question marks”, said the chairman of the CSU regional group in the Bundestag, Alexander Dobrindt, on Tuesday in Berlin.

But it brought a result.

"And you have to deal with the result."

Dobrindt predicted the process would lead to discussion.

But they also have “the common mandate that we do not extend processes permanently”.

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Politicians are all "children of committees," said Dobrindt.

"We all live in committees."

But: "Of course, we also experience that bodies can only function as long as their decisions are accepted."

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210420-99-275648 / 3