Jens Spahn resigns from CDU parliamentary leadership amid surrogate‑mother debate
German centre‑right MP and former health minister Jens Spahn announced on Saturday that he would step down as chair of the Christian Democratic Union’s (CDU) parliamentary group after criticism over his private use of a surrogate mother in the United States to father a child with his husband.
The move follows an earlier revelation that the 46‑year‑old had become a father this week in a surrogacy arrangement abroad – an option legal in Germany when the pregnancy occurs outside the country, even though domestic surrogacy is banned and punishable by up to three years in prison.
Spahn, a key figure in the ruling coalition and a potential future chancellor, said he had realised his personal pursuit of parenthood was no longer compatible with “the expectations placed on me as Chairman of our parliamentary group.” Chancellor Friedrich Merz welcomed the resignation as “right” and “inevitable,” stressing the importance of credibility.
The controversy arrives at a time when the CDU is already struggling in the polls and faces an on‑coming regional election in East Germany where the far‑right Alternative für Deutschland party could win a majority – a shock vote for the first time since World War II.
Other German politicians, as well as commentators across Europe, have criticised the double standard, noting that politicians who campaigned against legalising surrogacy have now benefitted from it. The debate also highlights a widening divide over family policy as Italy and France tighten their own surrogacy bans.
