Joachim-Friedrich Martin Josef Merz is a German politician who has served as Leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) since January 2022 and led the CDU/CSU (Union) parliamentary group as well as being Leader of the Opposition in the Bundestag since February 2022. In September 2024, he became the Union's candidate for Chancellor of Germany ahead of the 2025 federal election. With the CDU winning the most seats in the election, and the CDU/CSU having subsequently reached an agreement to form a coalition with the SPD, Merz is projected to become the next chancellor on 6 May 2025.
