Merkel Rejects Presidency Bid
Berlin, 2nd of September. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel stated that she does not plan to put forward her candidacy for the post of new President of the Federal Republic of Germany, reported Romanian agency Agerpres.
Consensus
- Angela Merkel stated she will not run for the German presidency.
- Merkel called the idea of her running for president 'absurd'.
- Merkel has been in politics for 30 years, including 16 years as federal chancellor.
- Merkel expressed happiness about being able to focus on other things in life.
- The event took place during a public presentation of her memoirs in Bucharest.
- The next German presidential election is scheduled for January 30, 2027.
- The current president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, will not seek re-election.
Points of divergence
- An opinion poll by Forsa conducted on August 5–6 showed Merkel leading the list of potential presidential candidates, with 47% of respondents considering her suitable and 48% considering her unsuitable. — vm
- Merkel's office had previously rejected the possibility of her return to politics in February, and she had stated in a May interview with WDR that she did not want to become president. — fontanka
- The Forsa poll was conducted for RTL and ntv, and the results showed 47% of respondents considered Merkel suitable and 48% unsuitable. — vesti
- On June 8, media reported that Jan van Aken, co-chair of Germany's Left Party, proposed Merkel as a possible EU mediator in negotiations between Russia and Ukraine. — vm
Coverage (3 sources)
- Merkel Refused to Run for the Post of President of Germany — Вечерняя Москва
- «This is absurd». Merkel again rules out the possibility of becoming president of Germany — Фонтанка
- Merkel called the idea of becoming president of Germany absurd — Вести