Greens’ Baerbock Wants to Be Candidate for German Leader: Bild

(Bloomberg) -- Germany’s Green Party co-Chairwoman Annalena Baerbock considers herself a good fit to replace Angela Merkel as chancellor, she said in an interview with Bild am Sonntag.

Her statement follows that of her co-chairman, Robert Habeck, who declared his intention to run for chancellor in October. The Greens want to put forward a candidate for chancellor for the first time in the approaching election campaign. The decision on who will be the candidate is expected in the spring.

“Three years as a party leader, member of parliament and mother of small children” show she is tough enough to take on the job, Baerbock said, when asked whether she has the nerves and the psychological and physical strength needed to run the Chancellery.

Merkel has said she won’t run for a fifth term next year. The election is scheduled for the fall of 2021 at the latest. Habeck is the most popular Green leader nationwide, according to polls.

The Greens have gained the most members among German parties in recent years and briefly surpassed Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union in the polls little more than a year ago in the wake of big climate protests.

Support for Merkel’s CDU-led party bloc was 37% in the latest weekly Forsa poll, with the Greens at 19% and Merkel’s Social Democratic coalition partner at 15%.

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