CDU elects Hagel as their primary candidate
In a speech at the Carl-Benz-Center in Stuttgart, Manuel Hagel, the CDU's lead candidate for the Baden-Württemberg state election in March 2026, outlined his pragmatic and unifying campaign strategy.
With over 55,000 members and a recent gain of around 5,000 members, Hagel leads the CDU in Baden-Württemberg. He emphasised the party's founding principles against hate and agitation, highlighting their importance in a time when democracy is under threat and hate and agitation are becoming political means.
Hagel aims to make the CDU the political home of the diligent, a centre that acts rather than complains. He expressed optimism about the opportunity to start something big for the CDU and Baden-Württemberg.
In his speech, Hagel sharply criticised current Green Minister-President Winfried Kretschmann regarding scientists from the USA. However, he maintained a friendly tone towards political rivals and focused on practical issues such as a hardship review of the recently reformed property tax to help homeowners.
The CDU under Hagel seeks to form the next government by capitalising on a generally favourable public mood against the Greens in the state. Polls show the CDU leading despite Kretschmann's personal popularity.
Specific detailed policy agendas from Hagel for 2026 are not fully disclosed publicly, but key points include avoiding harsh political polarisation or cultural war themes, supporting homeowners via property tax hardship reviews, engaging with business and middle-class interests, and presenting a campaign style that is friendly but strategically cautious.
By contrast, Cem Özdemir of the Greens emphasises ecological transformation and the future of the automotive industry centred on electromobility and battery production. However, Hagel's CDU aims to leverage concerns about the Greens' direction and enjoy broader electoral support at the moment.
Hagel does not want to lock AfD voters behind a wall and believes a bridge must be built for them. He aims to lead with clear values and a firm stance, being conservative in values but progressive in structures. The CDU does not plan to cooperate with the AfD, but Hagel wants to bring AfD voters back into the bourgeois centre.
Hagel's vision for the CDU is pragmatic, practical, and good, focusing on achieving good things and preserving what already exists. He aims to talk about the problems in the country and offers a reliable political policy to businesses.
Hagel is striving for an Agenda 2036 for Baden-Württemberg, focusing on removing obstacles that hinder innovation and inventors. He wants to create an administration that supports innovation and only regulates what is necessary.
In a nod to Kretschmann's legacy, Hagel sees it in "good hands" with the CDU. He stated, "A strong economy isn't everything, but without a strong economy, nothing is possible."
The CDU is presenting its team for the state election in Baden-Württemberg on March 8, 2026. Hagel wants effort, diligence, and hard work to pay off again. He aims to create an administration that supports innovation and only regulates what is necessary.
- The CDU under Hagel's leadership is focusing on policy-and-legislation, particularly the creation of a pragmatic and unifying campaign strategy that aims to form the next government in Baden-Württemberg, and this includes avoiding harsh political polarization, supporting homeowners via property tax hardship reviews, engaging with business and middle-class interests, and presenting a campaign style that is friendly but strategically cautious.
- In the general-news sphere, there has been increasing discussion about the state election in Baden-Württemberg, with the CDU, led by Hagel, emphasizing the importance of their founding principles in a time when democracy is under threat, and Hagel himself aiming to make the CDU the political home of the diligent, a center that acts rather than complains, and standing against hate and agitation in politics.
