Armin Laschet, a potential successor to Merkel, laughed so badly

The landscape is very embarrassing as it runs one of the two regions worst affected by the disaster, North Rhine-Westphalia. Armin LaschetThe preferred candidate to succeed the German chancellor
Angela MerkelOn Saturday, she had to apologize after being hilariously photographed during a visit to the victims
Recent floods in the country.

The person who also leads Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU), for the September 26 legislative elections, was shocked with hilarity during an honorary speech by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Located behind the head of the state, we see him in the photos laughing for nearly 30 seconds, accompanied by six people. The two men were navigating the town of Irwistadt, which was particularly devastated by floods. At least 165 people, including 141 in Germany, died in Europe in rare-scale floods, caused by torrential rains in the west of the continent.

Another meatball in a week

“Outrageous”, “disgusting” … The video, immortalized by local TV channel WDR, was shared several hundred times on Twitter on Saturday, infuriating the Social Democratic politicians, conservative partners in Angela’s coalition government. Merkel and many other Internet users. “I am simply speechless,” said Lars Klingbeil, SPD general secretary, on Twitter. “A personal matter,” another SPD official, Kevin Kunert, sarcastically referred to. The residents of the region also shared their anger: “I grew up in Erfstadt (…) The behavior of our (regional) president is unacceptable and inexcusable,” one of them, Olaf Wechkis, tweeted.

Facing the controversy, Armin Laschet apologized Saturday night on Twitter: “I regret the impression that a conversation gave. “It was inappropriate and I’m sorry for that,” he said. The candidate isn’t a “big uproar” for the first time during bad weather: Thursday, he sparked a sense of incomprehension after the arrest of a journalist using the term “young woman” on regional channel WDR. A term that many internet users consider paternalistic and sexist.

CDU leads opinion polls

This new controversy is in the middle of the election campaign. The conservative CDU party remains in the lead in voting intentions for the legislative elections, which should appoint a successor to Angela Merkel, in power since 2005. The Conservatives lead by 30%, ahead of the Green Party candidate, Annalena Barbock on 20% and Olaf Schulz, the SPD candidate ( Democratic Socialist) by 15%, according to a ZDF poll published earlier this week.

Annalena Barbock, who was once on top of voting intentions two months ago, later fell into the polls after a series of blunders.