Decision on members of the Union government
Prior to the election of Friedrich Merz as Chancellor, the CDU and CSU have announced their ministers.
Wolf Zinn (mit dpa),
29.04.2025 
Shortly before the planned election of Friedrich Merz as Federal Chancellor on 6 May 2025, it is clear which Union candidates are to head which ministries. CDU-chairman Merz and CSU leader Markus Söder have announced the ministers they have chosen to comprise a “black-red” cabinet in the coalition of CDU/CSU and SPD. This is the team with which Merz hopes to shape Germany’s policies:
This 51-year-old is seen as the closest confidant of prospective future Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The lawyer has held a seat in the Bundestag since 2013. In the chancellery, the intention is for Frei to ensure smooth governance procedures and maintain contact with the federal states.
Johann Wadephul is the first Foreign Minister to represent the CDU for almost 60 years. This lawyer and lieutenant in the reserve has held a seat in the Bundestag since 2009 and is considered to be close to Merz. You can learn more about Johann Wadephul here.
Participants in the coalition negotiations among CDU, CSU und SPD suggest that the long-term CSU committee leader and former Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt was effective in building bridges and finding compromises. As Interior Minister, the 54-year-old is now among other things to be tasked with implementing the Union’s take on asylum policy.
As an entrepreneur, Karsten Wildberger is to take on the new Ministry of Digitisation: the 55-year-old is currently CEO of Ceconomy and of MediaMarktSaturn with around 1,000 consumer electronics stores worldwide. Wildberg comes from Gießen, studied physics and has a PhD.
The nomination of 51-year-old Katherina Reiche as Minister of Economic Affairs is a surprise. In 1998 she was 25 when she entered the Bundestag and remained a member until 2015. Born in Brandenburg, she was deputy head of the Union faction from 2005 to 2009. The graduate chemist switched to the Association of Local Utilities in 2015 and subsequently became chair of energy provider Westenergie.
Patrick Schnieder has been a member of the Bundestag since 2009. The 56-year-old was outright winner of the Bitburg constituency. The lawyer was manager of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the last legislative period. His future position should give Schneider a key role in discharging the special funds for infrastructure.
This CSU politician is to become Minister of Research, Technology and Space Travel in the black-red cabinet. She was previously Digital Minister of State under Chancellor Angela Merkel. She has sat in the Bundestag since 2002. In the Bundestag election in 2024, she won her Bavarian Bad Kissingen constituency with 50.5 per cent of the first votes, more than every other candidate.
It is a surprise that CDU member of the Bundestag Nina Warken is to become Minister of Health She has sat in the Bundestag since 2013. The 45-year-old is CDU General Secretary in Baden-Württemberg.
Alois Rainer, in the Bundestag since 2013, is to become the new Federal Minister of Food, Agriculture and Home Affairs. Rainer is a qualified butcher and still manages his family business. He was Mayor of the Haibach municipality in Lower Bavaria for 18 years.
Karin Prien is seen as one of the highest-profile education politicians in the Union. She has been the Minister of Education in Schleswig-Holstein since 2017. The 59-year-old is deputy CDU party chief and since 2022 also deputy federal chair of the CDU. Prior to her time in the most northerly federal state, the lawyer was a member of the Hamburg City Parliament for six years.
