Profile: The CDU

Christian Democratic Union / Christlich Demokratische Union

The CDU is the main party of government, led by Angela Merkel. It is a centre-right conservative party that subscribes to Christian democratic principles – as the name would suggest. They are the true heavyweights of German politics, with 5 chancellors (German prime ministers) in power for a total of 43 years. They arguably shaped the republic as it stands today – having held power for its first 20 years and more recently overseeing reunification.

It is, of course, easy for outsiders to get the wrong idea about the party – its Christian outlook, substantially catholic membership, toughness on terrorism and its family first policy positions could tempt you to think that the party is one of the ‘hard right’. While certainly a conservative organisation, it enthusiastically campaigns for the centre and now even some centre-left votes – for good reason.

The decline and possible collapse of its current and natural coalition partner, the FDP, has led the CDU to think very carefully about its direction. Although it has been consistently the highest (or joint highest) polling party for the past 10 years, the German voting system renders it nearly impossible to form a one party government. This means that the CDU will likely have to form a coalition with one of the centre-left parties if it is to remain in power. This political reality is driving the CDU leftwards, picking up policies such as a national minimum wage along the way. The CDU could well be preparing themselves for a coalition with the Greens or the Social Democrats come the next federal election in 2013.

With the FDP leaving a political vacuum in cabinet until those elections, Merkel and other CDU cabinet members such as Wolfgang Schäuble (former Minister of the Interior, now Finance Minister) and Thomas de Maizière (Defence Minister) have become the driving force within the German government. With the gravity of the Eurozone crisis and the fact new elections are in neither of the parties’ interests, the CDU has been allowed to take up the slack in government instead of the normal course of simply letting it collapse.

Perversely, the demise of its main ally – which is the CDU’s biggest threat to long-term power – has delivered the CDU more power than they could have ever hoped for. At least, in the short-term...