Overview
- The government finalized a wave of personnel changes on July 29–30 that removed Thorsten Frei and Patrick Schnieder from ministerial posts and named Nina Warken, Carsten Linnemann and Steffen Bilger as new ministers.
- The new appointees have not been sworn in because the government postponed the Bundestag oath until September, a move constitutional scholars say may violate Article 64 of the Basic Law.
- Thorsten Frei was elected chair of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group with about 92 percent support in a special faction meeting, signaling short‑term consolidation inside the Bundestag caucus.
- Three CDU minister‑presidents from Saxony‑Anhalt, Saxony and Thuringia published a joint paper criticizing Merz's direction, demanding East‑focused reform and defending the 45‑year pension rule, and regional leaders have voiced strong public discontent.
- Merz carried out eight personnel changes in roughly 1.5 weeks after Jens Spahn’s resignation, a tempo that has provoked internal criticism and could intensify electoral pressure in eastern states ahead of imminent state votes.