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Ex-chancellor Merkel 'won't run' for German presidency

By AAP Newswire

Feb 13, 2026

Former chancellor Angela Merkel will not run for the German presidency, a spokeswoman says.

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The spokeswoman rejected reports from the Bild tabloid that the opposition Green Party could propose Merkel, from the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), as a candidate for the 2027 presidential election.

President Frank-Walter Steinmeier's second and final term in the largely ceremonial role ends in March 2027.

Speculation has emerged suggesting that Merkel, who led Germany from 2005 to 2021, could attempt to become the country's first female president.

But Green parliamentary leader Britta Hasselmann also played down the rumour.

"There is no truth to that," she told the Rheinische Post newspaper.

"We have neither discussed nor decided anything regarding the federal presidential election."

Other potential candidates for the presidency include Education Minister Karien Prien and Ilse Aigner, the president of the Bavarian state parliament.

Merkel has largely stayed out of politics since retiring in 2021 but she is due to attend a CDU party conference as guest of honour next week.