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Politico (2 September 2026)

Max GRIERA

Niclas Herbst and René Repasi want to shake up how the center-right and left work together. But will their bosses agree?

Top lawmakers in the European Parliament want to replace the fragile alliance supporting Ursula von der Leyen with a formal German-style centrist coalition — over fears her group relies too much on the far right to pass legislation.

Niclas Herbst and René Repasi, the respective parliamentary leaders of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s center-right Christian Democrats and Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil’s center-left Social Democrats — the two parties that govern Germany — said they want their pan-European political families to strike a deal to push through policies as a united front rather than bicker over issues they disagree on. In what would be a striking reversal of how their two groups have drifted apart, they want formal governance structures to resolve disputes and take turns promoting their priorities.

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