World

Jens Spahn Resigns as CDU/CSU Parliamentary Group Leader After Surrogacy Controversy

Herz — Business Desk · 18 July 2026 at 15:57 · 30s summary · 3 min read

The essentials

Jens Spahn, parliamentary group leader for the CDU/CSU at the German Bundestag, resigned on July 18, 2026, following explicit pressure from Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The crisis erupted on July 15, 2026, when Spahn and his husband Daniel Funke announced the birth of their son Georg, carried by a surrogate mother in the United States — a practice that is illegal in Germany and opposed by the CDU, a position Spahn himself had previously defended. Merz described the resignation as 'just and unavoidable.' Alexander Hoffmann (CSU) is serving as interim head of the group.

Spahn resigned on July 18, 2026, as CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader under pressure from Chancellor Merz.
A crisis erupted after Spahn announced a son born via surrogacy in the US, a practice banned in Germany.
Merz explicitly demanded Spahn's resignation, calling it 'just and unavoidable.'
Alexander Hoffmann (CSU) serves as interim leader; Thorsten Frei is the likely successor.
The CDU presidium meets July 20, 2026; the group convenes in regular session September 8, 2026.

What We Know

Jens Spahn resigned on July 18, 2026, as parliamentary group leader of the CDU/CSU at the German Bundestag — the body that coordinates the joint action of CDU and CSU parliamentarians in Germany's federal assembly. Chancellor Friedrich Merz had explicitly asked him to step down, according to Handelsblatt.

The crisis erupted three days earlier: on July 15, 2026, Spahn and his husband Daniel Funke announced the birth of their son Georg, carried by a surrogate mother in the United States.

Surrogacy is illegal in Germany. The CDU opposes legalizing it — a position Spahn had himself previously supported. This conflict between his personal conduct and his party's official line made his political position untenable.

In Spahn's Words

In his letter to the group, Spahn wrote that his personal happiness at starting a family with his husband 'is not compatible with my political office.'

My family is what matters most.
— Jens Spahn, in his resignation letter to the CDU/CSU group

Reactions

Merz described the resignation as 'just and unavoidable.'

Credibility is the most valuable asset in politics.
— Friedrich Merz, German Chancellor

Internal voices had anticipated the fall. As early as July 17, 2026, Daniel Peters, CDU leader of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, called for Spahn's resignation in the newspaper Bild. Local party branches, including those from Brilon (Merz's hometown) and the Rhine-Neckar district, followed suit.

Hendrik Wüst, Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, said he personally regretted the resignation while understanding it, calling it 'a great tragedy.'

The Succession

Alexander Hoffmann, leader of the CSU parliamentary group at the Bundestag, is serving as interim head of the CDU/CSU group until an official successor is elected in a plenary session.

Thorsten Frei, currently head of the federal chancellery and former parliamentary affairs manager of the group when Merz was in opposition, is the leading candidate. If Frei moves to this position, Merz will also need to find a replacement for the chancellery.