CDU General Secretary Paul Ziemiak has rated the change at the top of the North Rhine-Westphalian CDU as a "sign of new beginnings".

"Hendrik Wüst stands for a generation change at the head of the most populous federal state: He is now the right man to continue the successful policy of the past four years," said Ziemiak of the German Press Agency in Berlin.

The NRW CDU wants to appoint Wüst as the successor to Armin Laschet on Saturday, who is moving to the Bundestag.

Wüst is also to succeed Laschet in the office of head of government.

The 46-year-old is expected to be elected as the new Prime Minister in the state parliament next Wednesday.

"Excellent work done for four years"

Ziemiak praised Laschet's performance. The black-and-yellow government under his leadership has “done an excellent job over the past four years: the police and the judiciary have been strengthened, investments in daycare centers and universities, and the economy has been unbureaucratised and unleashed." must be anchored in the broader society and have answers to changed social realities. ”This requires someone who moves forward with clear ideas, sets the pace and stands for programmatic renewal. "As a Union, we were also always strongest when we exuded unity and determination."

Laschet ran as the Union's candidate for chancellor.

Even before the defeat in the Bundestag election, he had made a commitment not to remain in his offices in North Rhine-Westphalia even if he failed.

The Bielefeld party congress does not decide on the top candidacy for the state election on May 15, 2022. In a greeting, Laschet describes it as the “starting shot for preparation”.

Wüst has already made it clear that he does not see himself as a transition candidate, but wants to continue the black-yellow coalition beyond.

At least according to the latest voter poll, the poor performance of the Union in the federal elections seems to be dragging the CDU in North Rhine-Westphalia into a downward spiral. Seven months before the state elections, the opinion research institute Insa only found 20 percent approval for the CDU in North Rhine-Westphalia last week. This corresponds to a drop of 13 percentage points compared to their state election results of 2017. The SPD, on the other hand, landed at 33 percent.

At the Germany Day of the JU a week ago Wüst set the goal of winning back the voters of the center, who the Union lost en masse in the Bundestag election: workers, skilled workers, self-employed and families of all ages.

When it comes to climate change, the Union has allowed itself to be put on the defensive because it has not given the impression that it has a plan.

"Then people choose the original." That shouldn't happen again.