Overview

• Table. Briefings reports documents and emails indicating Julia Klöckner supported in 2023, as CDU treasurer, a joint venture with Frank Gotthardt to build a party digital platform called “CDU App GmbH.”
• Draft terms cited in the reporting envisaged the CDU holding 24.9 percent while Gotthardt had majority control and a lasting role in party IT and campaign functions, with a first meeting reportedly including Friedrich Merz.
• The CDU says the talks ended in a pre‑contractual phase and no company was formed due to differing views on cooperation.
• Unrest is growing within the CDU over Klöckner’s conduct as some figures call the episode a new misstep, while opposition leaders press for explanations and in some cases resignation.
• At Sunday’s Koblenz event hosted on CompuGroup Medical property, Klöckner likened the taz to Nius and later framed her stance as free‑speech; journalists’ groups and experts condemned the equivalence and noted Nius is run by Julian Reichelt and financed by Gotthardt.