German Chancellor Announces Government Reshuffle After Spahn's Resignation

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced changes to the German government’s personnel on Friday following the resignation of Jens Spahn, head of the Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) parliamentary bloc.

Spahn announced his resignation on 18 July after a scandal emerged within the CDU concerning Spahn and his husband paying a woman for surrogacy services in the United States.

Other members of the CDU/CSU bloc, including Chancellor Friedrich Merz, condemned the move, as surrogacy is illegal in Germany.

“[CSU leader] Markus Soder and I quickly reached an agreement to propose the nomination of [Head of the Federal Chancellery] Thorsten Frei for the position of new leader of the CDU/CSU parliamentary bloc,” Merz said at a press conference.

“I propose [German Health Minister] Nina Warken as Frei’s replacement,” he added.

In addition to leading the Chancellery, Warken will serve as German Minister for Special Affairs, a position previously held by Frei, the Chancellor added.

After Warken moves to lead the Chancellery, the current CDU secretary general, Carsten Linnemann, will become the new health minister, Merz said.

The vote on Frei’s nomination as the new parliamentary bloc leader will take place on 29 July, the Chancellor added.

Merz also announced the appointment of the current parliamentary state secretary at the German Ministry of Digital Affairs, Philipp Amthor, as the new minister of state for relations between the central government and the federal states at the Chancellery.