Friedrich Merz on course to take Germany’s top job after election, vows to unite Europe

Friedrich Merz, Germany's potential next chancellor, prioritizes European unity and security amid global challenges.

Friedrich Merz, on course to become post-World War II Germany's 10th chancellor after the country's election, has vowed to prioritize European unity and the continent's security as it grapples with the new Trump administration and Russia's war on Ukraine.

Mr. Merz's task will be complicated by the need to form a coalition with the center-left Social Democrats of outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholz. He has repeatedly pledged not to work with the far-right anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany party despite their second-place finish.

The 69-year-old conservative leader heads the center-right Union bloc, which won Germany's national election with 28.5% of the votes.

“I am also aware of the scale of the task that now lies ahead of us," he told supporters after his victory Sunday night. “The world out there isn’t waiting for us, and it isn’t waiting for long-drawn-out coalition talks and negotiations."

The top job has been late in coming for Mr. Merz, a lawyer by profession, who saw his ascent derailed by former Chancellor Angela Merkel in the early 2000s and even turned his back on active politics for several years. Despite his political experience, he is heading to the chancellery without previously having served in government.

Merkel has described Mr. Merz as a brilliant speaker and complimented his desire for leadership, though she acknowledged this was a problem in their relationship.

“We are almost the same age ... We grew up completely differently, which was more of an opportunity than an obstacle," she wrote in her memoir "Freedom."