After electronic polling chaos, Germany’s Merz reelected CDU leader with 91% of vote

By Ayhan Simsek

BERLIN (AA) - Chancellor Friedrich Merz was reelected leader of the Christian Democrats (CDU) on Friday, securing 91.2% of delegate votes after a day marked by significant technical problems and delays.

The party had planned to use tablets for rapid digital balloting at its congress in the city of Stuttgart, with results expected within minutes. However, repeated technical failures forced organizers to abandon digital voting entirely and distribute traditional paper ballots to the approximately 1,000 delegates, which slowed down the process considerably.

The vote was seen as an important measure of Merz's authority as both party leader and chancellor following the CDU/CSU's electoral victory last May. His result beat his 2024 performance, when he got 89.8% of delegate votes.

Party officials gave no immediate explanation for the digital voting glitch and declined to comment on speculation of a possible cyberattack or other causes.