Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) had intended his cabinet reshuffle to mark a fresh start for his government, instead, it has plunged the federal government into fresh turbulence. Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU) announced on Sunday evening that he would ask the chancellor to dismiss him, citing the "undignified situation" that the circumstances of the reshuffle had created for him. Merz then announced his successor: Steffen Bilger (CDU), the parliamentary manager of the CDU/CSU group, is set to take over the ministry.
Over the weekend, Merz also came under fire from within the CDU over the botched handling of the reshuffle, with critics accusing him of dilettantism and poor communication. According to his spokesman, Merz called Schnieder on Sunday and expressed his "regret" that "the change of office could not be communicated as planned due to unforeseen circumstances."
According to information obtained by AFP, Merz had already informed Schnieder on Thursday that he intended to dismiss him. However, this did not happen, as the potential successor, Fritz Güntzler, had initially agreed to take on the role but then withdrew at short notice. As a result, Merz was only able to announce the new appointments for the head of the Chancellery and the health minister on Friday, while the future occupant of the transport ministry remained undecided.
In a public statement, Schnieder said his decision was intended to end the undignified situation that made the necessary substantive work impossible. He said he was drawing the consequences from recent developments, arguing that in the interest of the country and a functioning ministry, a swift and clear succession was urgently needed, pointing in particular to major, far-reaching decisions on the railway that could not be delayed.
The 47-year-old Christian Democrat comes from Baden-Württemberg and brings transport policy experience to his new role. Bilger sat on parliament's transport committee from 2009 to 2018 and subsequently served as parliamentary state secretary in the transport ministry until 2021.
Merz's handling of Schnieder's departure triggered open discontent within the CDU over the weekend. Christian Bäumler, deputy federal chairman of the CDU's employee wing, told Handelsblatt that Schnieder's dismissal as transport minister created the impression of arbitrariness, adding that a federal government should not be run like a feudal kingdom and that this approach was damaging public trust in democracy.
Michael Ludwig, a CDU state parliament member from Rhineland-Palatinate whose constituency includes Schnieder's home district, said he was outraged by the chancellor's approach. He told Der Tagesspiegel that their local CDU branch in Rhineland-Palatinate was in a state of shock, with morale at rock bottom, and that they simply did not understand the chancellor. He described Schnieder as a competent, hard-working and well-regarded federal transport minister who knew he was being dismissed without anyone knowing why or who would succeed him.
Former CDU minister Peter Altmaier also sharply criticized the chancellor's treatment of Schnieder, writing on X that the way he had been treated left him troubled and angry and did not do justice to Schnieder as a person or to his record. Altmaier described Schnieder as an experienced professional, a hard worker, and a great person and friend. Rhineland-Palatinate's state premier, Gordon Schnieder (CDU), Patrick Schnieder's brother, shared Altmaier's post on X.
Merz did receive support from CSU leader Markus Söder, who said in the ZDF "Sommerinterview" that it was the chancellor's right to appoint new ministers and that he considered Merz's approach appropriate. Söder said Merz could not be blamed for Güntzler's last-minute withdrawal as the preferred candidate for the transport ministry, noting that a candidate who had agreed and then pulled out again was something that could simply happen.
The reshuffle is part of a broader personnel shake-up triggered by the resignation of Jens Spahn (CDU) as leader of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group. Thorsten Frei (CDU), formerly head of the Chancellery, is taking over Spahn's role. Nina Warken (CDU) is set to become the new head of the Chancellery, while her previous post at the Federal Ministry of Health will be taken over by current CDU General Secretary Carsten Linnemann.
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