Conservative, millionaire, amateur pilot... Who is Friedrich Merz, the new Chancellor of Germany?

Two and a half months after his victory in the parliamentary elections, the leader of the conservatives, Friedrich Merz, succeeded the Social Democrat Olaf Scholz , at the head of a coalition government appointed for four years. But his historic defeat in the first round of voting this Tuesday morning, sounds like a serious initial hiccup.

Often referred to as a "man of the past," the new chancellor is generating great hopes among his European allies, who are counting on Germany's support in a world turned upside down by Donald Trump and threatened by Vladimir Putin.

It was a long road for this lawyer by training , removed from power in the early 2000s by Angela Merkel, although he considered himself the natural heir to Helmut Kohl, the father of German reunification.

The man who has never held a ministerial post takes the reins of the leading European power at a time of geopolitical upheaval , when Europe is seeking to free itself from the military tutelage of an American ally who has become unpredictable in order to ensure its defense against the Russian threat.

A staunch Atlanticist, he nonetheless promised to bring his country back to the center of the European game with a "strong voice" to defend the interests of the continent, also targeted by Trump's trade war.

This supporter of unwavering aid to Ukraine has already made an impression by announcing in March, along with his government partners from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), an unprecedented spending program worth several hundred billion euros to rearm and modernize Germany, which until now has been very attached to budgetary orthodoxy.

"A fantastic debut for Friedrich Merz," headlined the weekly The Economist in a very flattering editorial.

Millionaire and amateur airplane pilot

But the audacity that earned this millionaire and amateur pilot the praise of his European allies is now provoking criticism and discontent in Germany.

"Never has a chancellor begun his term with such low public confidence," Wolfgang Schroeder, professor of political science at the University of Kassel, told AFP, referring to recent opinion polls.

Many, including within his own ranks, accuse him of having betrayed his word by reforming the "debt brake" enshrined in the constitution, a mechanism that limits the country's capacity for borrowing, but also for investment.

This plays into the hands of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which denounces his "lie" .

"Much will depend on Friedrich Merz's ability to sell" the idea that "security is now the top priority," and that debt for this is "inevitable," emphasizes political scientist Ursula Münch of the University of Tutzing (south).

"Businessman"

During the election campaign, he promised a sharp shift to the right if he became chancellor, including tougher immigration rules following several deadly attacks involving foreigners.

Upon his election as head of the CDU in 2022, he announced a complete reversal of the generous reception policy inherited from Angela Merkel (2005-2021).

A revenge against the woman who removed him from the strategic position of president of the CDU parliamentary group in 2002, leading him to retrain in finance in 2009, notably at BlackRock, one of the largest asset managers in the world.

According to him, only a restrictive policy in this area can effectively curb the rise of the AfD, founded in 2013 by former CDU officials, with whom he excludes any cooperation despite the exhortations of Trump and his close associates.

The man who promised to "restore Germany's pride" will also have to find a way to resolve the deep crisis in the country's industrial model , which could be exacerbated by the new customs duties decreed by Trump.

A convinced liberal, he wants above all to reduce corporate taxes and bureaucracy.

"Many in the CDU believe that Merz and Trump could get along well," Der Spiegel magazine estimated. "Merz knows the United States, he has a career in the private sector, so he is also a businessman, which should please the "deal maker" in the White House."