The voting begins in the high-stakes election in Germany. Recent surveys give an edge to Merz compared to Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats

Friedrich Merz, a man who has never held a government role, is preparing to take the reins in Germany just as the country faces its biggest economic and diplomatic crises in decades and Europe looks urgently for a new generation of leaders for an era of transatlantic tension.

Friedrich Merz, who is poised to become Germany's chancellor in a CDU-led government, has extensive experience as a lawyer and working with major corporations.