Germany's CDU elects new state party leader to succeed Laschet

Hendrik Wuest is the new chairman of Germany's Christian Democrats (CDU) in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
At a state party conference in Bielefeld on Saturday, the state transport minister was elected to succeed Armin Laschet with 98.3 per cent. The 46-year-old Wuest was the only candidate.
"Thank you very much for this fantastic result," Wuest said. "I will work very hard to justify this advance praise."
Laschet, who was at one point the front-runner to succeed fellow conservative Angela Merkel as German chancellor, oversaw the CDU's worst ever showing in parliamentary elections on September 26.
He had led the CDU state association since 2012 and was last re-elected for the third time in 2018 with 96.3 per cent of the valid delegate votes - his best result.
This time, Laschet did not run again as he is to become a member of the German parliament, or Bundestag. He also plans to submit his resignation as state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia on Monday, as the state constitution rules out holding both roles simultaneously.
In his last speech as state party leader, Laschet called for unity in the CDU in light of the upcoming state elections in North Rhine-Westphalia.
He stressed that, under his chairmanship, the party had overcome years of internal dispute.
"The CDU in North Rhine-Westphalia must never be divided again," he said in his speech, which was followed by five minutes of applause.
State elections in North Rhine-Westphalia are scheduled for May next year.