Overview
- Thuringia CDU official Niklas Waßmann said the chancellor has withdrawn from the traditional Apolda event.
- CDU sources now list Trier as the Ash Wednesday venue for Merz on February 18, following the cancellation of a planned Mainz retreat due to severe weather.
- The Bundes-CDU had planned to make up its Rheinland-Pfalz visit, and the new date places Merz in the state four weeks before voters choose a new Landtag.
- According to dpa reports, CDU/CSU parliamentary leader Jens Spahn is expected to stand in for Merz at the Apolda gathering.
- CDU leaders view the Rheinland-Pfalz race as a chance to unseat SPD Minister-President Alexander Schweitzer, and lead candidate Gordon Schnieder welcomed Merz’s Trier stop as a strong show of support.