In a recent interview, Jens Spahn, a CDU politician, expressed his desire for the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) to achieve a result of “around 40 percent” in the upcoming federal election. He emphasized that if people truly want to see real change, they must vote for the Union. According to Spahn, the CDU needs a strong result to make a significant difference and the current polls, which show the Union at around 30 percent, are not sufficient.
Spahn also stressed that the post-election talks with the Greens and SPD would be challenging and therefore, it is crucial for the CDU and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), to “really become strong.” He believes that the Union’s willingness to compromise is not as important as its ability to take action on the issues.
In his assessment of the CDU’s compromise-oriented approach, Spahn noted that, in his opinion, “handlungsfähigkeit in the matter is more important than kompromissfähigkeit as an end in itself.” He argued that a compromise only makes sense if it solves the problem, rather than simply delaying it. People, on the one hand, desire clarity and the resolution of problems and on the other hand, they would like to see these issues addressed through consensus. This, according to Spahn, is a challenging demand to meet.