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Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer: Merkel's choice elected ruling party leader | Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer: Merkel's choice elected ruling party leader |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Germany's ruling Christian Democrat Union has chosen Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer as its new party leader, ending Angela Merkel's 18-year reign. | |
The CDU general secretary narrowly beat Friedrich Merz, a millionaire lawyer, in a run-off vote in Hamburg. | |
Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer, or AKK as she is also known, received 517 of 999 votes. | |
Ms Merkel, who plans to serve out her term as chancellor until 2021, gave an emotional farewell speech on Friday at the special party conference. | |
As the head of Germany's largest party, Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer could now become the next German chancellor. | |
The 56-year-old former prime minister of the state of Saarland was the favourite for party leader and Ms Merkel's choice to succeed her. | |
Earlier, during her farewell speech as party leader, Mrs Merkel praised AKK for her 2017 electoral success in Saarland, in a clear hint of the chancellor's personal preference. | |
Who is AKK? | |
Popular in her home state of Saarland and Berlin, she has an unpretentious style and a reputation for calm analysis, as well as political acumen. | |
Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer joined the CDU as a student in 1981 and rose up the ranks of state-level politics. She was seen as Ms Merkel's heir apparent and protégé. | |
Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer became the first woman to serve as a state minister for internal affairs in 2000 and the first woman to serve as prime minister of Saarland, a position she held from 2011 to 2018. | |
She is a Merkel loyalist, perceived as someone who will replicate much of the chancellor's style and policy. | |
Who did she beat? | |
Her opponent, Mr Merz won 482 votes in a run-off. The lawyer was a powerful player in the CDU in the early 2000s but left politics when he fell out with the chancellor. | |
Since then, the 63-year-old has built a career in the private sector and works for US investment firm BlackRock. | |
He appeals to the more conservative and business-minded wing of the party, and had the backing of ex-Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble. | |
A third candidate was considered in the first round of voting, Health Minister Jens Spahn, but the former banker was not seen as a likely winner and received 157 votes. | |
The 38-year-old is a divisive figure for many, having ruffled feathers in the party and cabinet. |