“The gap between my private decision to have a child through surrogacy and the understandable expectations placed on me as chair of our parliamentary group has become greater than I anticipated,” he added.
Although surrogacy itself is illegal in Germany, there is no penalty for bringing up a child born through a surrogate mother abroad.
But Spahn, a former health minister, faced accusations of hypocrisy as Germany’s Christian Democrats are firmly opposed to surrogacy, a position the party reaffirmed earlier this year. Spahn himself had also in the past expressed skepticism about legalising the practice.
Several Christian Democrats called for Spahn to resign this week. Merz, meanwhile, on Friday announced that the surrogacy controversy would be a topic of debate at the party’s next executive committee meeting, and several German media outlets reported Saturday morning that the chancellor had asked Spahn to quit.
On X, Merz described Spahn’s decision to resign as “right and inevitable.” He added: “Credibility is the most valuable asset in politics.”