Overview
- In new remarks, Markus Söder called his online presence a necessary balancing act to reach voters, even as some in the CSU decry a "banalization" of politics after posts such as his studio version of "Sweet Caroline."
- Former party leaders Horst Seehofer and Erwin Huber labeled Söder’s refusal to consider coalitions with the Greens a strategic mistake, urging a broader positioning.
- At the Junge Union’s assembly in Aschaffenburg, delegates passed a motion against the planned Mütterrente III, citing roughly five billion euros in added costs and risks to investment priorities.
- CSU Bundestag group leader Alexander Hoffmann publicly backed Söder as a strong minister-president and said the Greens are no partner unless they move away from what he called ideological positions.
- Reporters and party figures point to the CSU board elections at the mid-December congress and Bavaria’s March 8, 2026 municipal vote as practical gauges of party unity and Söder’s authority.