CDU politician and Merkel confidante Helge Braun is withdrawing from politics

The long-time head of the Chancellery, Helge Braun (CDU), has announced his retirement from politics. After 18 years in the Bundestag, he did not want to run again in the 2025 federal election, the CDU politician wrote in a personal statement on Monday. “Politics thrives on change – now is the time for it,” wrote Braun, who currently heads the budget committee in the Bundestag.

Previously, Braun was, among other things, head of the Chancellery and Federal Minister for Special Tasks – and a close confidante of the former Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU). In 2022 he ran for chairmanship of the federal CDU, but was defeated by Friedrich Merz. Braun, who holds a doctorate in medicine, became known to a wider public through his appearances during the corona pandemic.

Braun wrote that he was now aiming for a “new, interesting design task outside of politics.” This is “a personal life decision that I made not without sadness – but also with a lot of curious anticipation about what new opportunities are now opening up.” However, a decision about his professional future has not yet been made.

Braun is a directly elected member of the Hessian constituency of Gießen-Alsfeld. According to information from Bild, Frederik Bouffier, who is already deputy chairman of the CDU district association in Giessen, wants to take over as his successor. He is a son of the former Prime Minister of Hesse Volker Bouffier. (AFP)