| UPDATED: 16:44, Wed, Feb 3, 2021
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Mrs Merkel will soon leave the centre stage after winning four elections for her Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party. Armin Laschet, the 59-year-old son of a coal miner, is likely to run for Chancellor after having become the CDU’s new leader during a virtual party conference last month. He beat his main contender, Friedrich Merz, a longtime critic of Mrs Merkel and a politician turned businessman.