Overview
- The campaign was unveiled Thursday by CDU leader Daniel Peters using the slogan “Die Mitte ist das Beste” and a fishbrötchen image to symbolise the party’s claim to the political centre.
- Polling shows the CDU in deep trouble with roughly 9 percent support while the AfD leads at about 36 percent and the SPD is at about 29 percent, heightening pressure on the new campaign.
- Alongside the imagery the CDU published concrete offers, including €15,000 Baukindergeld and a €2,000 subsidy toward drivers’ licences for volunteering youths, and named a ten‑member competence team that includes Lars Schwarz and Marco Gemballa.
- The rollout has won attention but also ridicule and scrutiny, with opponents and commentators questioning seriousness and a public dispute over the stock photo’s source and price (claims of €19 versus €73); the radio spot is voiced by Manfred Lehmann.
- The CDU plans intensive local outreach, market stands and a summer/autumn push with national figures to try to shift voter focus back to policy, a campaign choice that could either revive support or deepen criticism that style has overtaken substance.