Meet ‘Mini-Merkel’ Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer: the AC/DC fan who could run Germany

For once the loudest cheers at her own party conference were not for Angela Merkel. The veteran chancellor was upstaged by the woman she appears to have chosen as her successor, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, and as the two women stood side by side it was hard to escape the impression this was a carefully scripted anointing of the heir apparent.

Ms Kramp-Karrenbauer is popularly known as “mini-Merkel”, and it was not lost on German observers that she turned up in a strikingly Merkellian outfit of black trousers and pale round-collared jacket. The leadership of democracies is not supposed to be a hereditary affair, but at times it seemed as if Mrs Merkel was trying to bequeath her Christian Democract…

To continue reading this article

Start a 30-day free trial for unlimited access to Premium articles

• Unlimited access to Premium articles 
• Subscriber-only events and experiences
• Cancel any time

Free for 30 days

then only £2 per week

Try Premium

Save 25% with an annual subscription

Just £75 per year

 

Save now

Register for free and access one Premium article per week

Register

Only subscribers have unlimited access to Premium articles.Register for free to continue reading this article
RegisterOr unlock all Premium articles.
Free for 30 days, then just £1 per week
Start trial
Save 40% when you pay annually.
View all subscription options  |
Already have an account? Login