Against All Odds: Angela Merkel, Ursula von der Leyen, Anngret Kramp-Karrenbauer and the German Paradox of Female CDU Leadership

ABSTRACT Despite its traditional adherence to gender roles limiting women’s responsibilities to Kinder, Küche, Kirche, the Christian Democratic Party itself has been ruled by three powerful females since 2018: Chancellor Angela Merkel, Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen, and CDU General-Secretary Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer. Despite occasional waves of conservative-hardliner resistance, all three women have helped to modernise the German gender regime while opening new doors for future women leaders across the party spectrum. Having exited the political stage after the 2021 elections, the Chancellor played a significant role in advancing the political fortunes of German women, beginning with von der Leyen, who now enjoys supranational prominence as EU Commission President, and Kramp-Karrenbauer, ostensibly descending the national power ladder despite her earlier successes. These diverging trajectories raise new questions as to the conditions under which we might expect women to prove ‘effective’ leaders. This article explores biographical parallels, stylistic differences, and the changing political landscape that may have facilitated or impeded each woman’s ability to transfer the leadership skills she acquired at one level to the mastering of challenges at another. It concludes with reflections on Merkel’s legacy in relation to ‘gender and politics’.