German conservative launches 3rd bid to lead Merkel’s party

BERLIN (AP) — A conservative one-time rival of Chancellor Angela Merkel has joined the race to become the new leader of the outgoing German leader’s party, making his third bid for the job in three years. Friedrich Merz, 66, was nominated for the leadership by his local branch of the center-right Christian Democratic Union on Monday evening. He is the third candidate to succeed Armin Laschet, who led the party to defeat and its worst-ever election result in September. Norbert Roettgen, a former environment minister who has chaired parliament’s foreign policy committee in recent years, and Merkel’s chief of staff, Helge Braun, threw their hats in the ring on Friday. Both are centrists, while Merz has generally appealed more to traditional conservatives.