Currently a CDU deputy parliamentary group leader, Spahn is not a foreign policy specialist, but his strong U.S. network, particularly his ties to Republicans, is seen as an asset. Spahn attended the Republican National Convention last year and is being mentioned as a more unconventional option given Merz’s need to forge links to the Trump administration.
Defense ministry
Boris Pistorius
Pistorius consistently ranks as one of Germany’s most popular politicians and is widely expected to keep his current role as defense minister.
SPD Chancellor Olaf Scholz selected Pistorius to become his defense minister nearly a year after Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Pistorius was then seen as an unusual choice, as he had no national leadership experience. But he has since earned the respect and admiration of politicians on both sides of the political spectrum at home, and of many of his NATO counterparts abroad. Pistorius, who has a relatively hawkish stance on Ukraine and has tried to modernize Germany’s armed forces to make them “fit for war,” has said he wants to keep the job.
Finance ministry
Lars Klingbeil
Klingbeil, currently co-leader of the SPD, is considered one of the party’s most disciplined communicators and a key figure in steering it through its post-Scholz transition. He’s also seen as the most likely choice for the powerful post of finance minister. Klingbeil took a leading role for his party during coalition negotiations, and while he doesn’t have the technocratic skillset of other candidates for the post, his appointment would give the SPD influence and control over the purse strings just as the country is set to unleash hundreds of billions of euros in new spending for defense and infrastructure.