thomas: jens spahn does not seem to be someone with top chances, but the race is very close. i don't think anyone would say for sure who they believe is going to get that post tomorrow. it seems it will be a close race between annegret kramp-karrenbauer and friedrich merz, and whoever does get that post will certainly have a big influence on the cdu in the next few years, whether it is remaining on the course in the center of the political spectrum , or whether it will be turning again back to the right of the political spectrum. somethingg that friedrich h merz could possibly do. this is a position that is very important for the cdu and german politics as a whole. it will influence the job that angela merkel has as chancellor in the remaining years before 2021. brent: our political correspondent, thomas sparrow, in berlin. thank you. here are some of the other stories that are making headlines around the world. in france, protesters have blocked access to hundreds of schools across the country and clashed with police in several cities. it is part of ongoing demonstrations ag

well the key contenders are free tonight and her health minister current health minister again spahn let's forget about spawn for now he's a young upcoming voice within the party but nobody really gives him a serious chance of success legally schmetz is somebody who left politics a decade ago over basically a power contest of the parliamentary party leadership that stated even further back with the now german chancellor angela merkel he came back from pretty much political oblivion he went into big business he is heads in germany here the world's largest investment fund so he said he will bring a very different course to the party if he is elected he also sounds rather more populist than machall ever did but they go a long way back indeed and when they both started out they were kindred spirits in wanting to reform the c.d.u. but also germany to be more provocative and liberal and what about the other candidate michele. working you tell us about her. well i think they've come she is the heir apparent of course she's the woman i'm going to put forward herself as party secretary genera

for i think it come combo of course offers a lot of continuity at the same time the two loses again spahn the health minister but a particular finish matzoh went into the runoff with her who came back from the business world to re enter politics after he lost the standoff with young the mac more than a decade ago they still want to play a prominent role so we're certainly in for a very interesting times here in the conservative c.d.u. party so interesting times for the c.d.u. says' be to tell us about a good kind what kind of for leader will she be like do you think i'm sure she'll be a very inclusive leader and i'm sure she'll be a very skillful leader she's a very smooth operator and i think she's also got real credentials as a winner however only of the lower in the little league history so well they're only in the zoolander or a very small german state has been very successful there so she has got winning credentials the same time i think some of all he was. asking about her foreign policy credentials whether she has any it's all she doesn't has to be said so that's going to be she's

i voted for spahn in the first round because, as a young person, he appealed to me. >> we knew it wasoing to be a very close contest. but as long as the vote and campaign are fair and democratic, i am actually help -- happy with it. >> kramp-karrenbauer now faces high expectations to reininvigorate the party and win elections. laila: our chief political commentator michaela kufner is an hamburg. good to see you. it went down to the wire. michaela: yes, and then kramp-karrenbauer secured that victory with just a few dozen boats there -- votes here. not the route -- a lot of people to determine the political position of the cdu party. kramp-karrenbauer is now a voice that merkel will have to listen to. although she is her favorite, she does some different on some issues. she is much more tough took -- tough talking on security issues. laila: what kind of leader do we expect kramp-karrenbauer to be? michaela: she is a moderator. she went on a listening tour which was meant to feed into a new party program. she was secretary-general of the party. she will now be right at the top of the pa

another candidate jens spahn the current health minister opposes chancellor miracles refugee policy. and takes a conservative stand on many issues. i want to see a germany that is modern and open minded and shows respect for traditional values homeland and family. because the city use new general secretary as policy not. a former leader of the cd ucs youth organization. will these new people at the top finally managed to resolve the deep divisions within the cd you. what do you mean former chancellor gerhard schroeder says the cd you made a mistake and they should have chosen friederich maps the corporate? lawyer. who was a major contender would you agree see when this? i would say the division in between the city -- is not a division and substances more division and personal like x.. there were parts of it that like fifty minutes more than a could come combo of but what is the real difference in substance i concede. that any one of these two would change the face of the party in substance they will still be a pro european polity you have to solve the refugee crisis and so on and so

i thank you from the bottom of my heart, especiallyjens spahn and friedrich merz for this fair competitiongestion is perhaps at some point there could be a smooth transition of power between mrs merkel and the new chancellor candidate — mrs merkel herself she would like to stay in the post of chancellor until the end of her term in 2021. today she relinquished a huge amount of power to annegret kramp—karrenbauer, as people in this room still hold the chancellor in very high esteem and very high in affection too, and believe it is likely she will not survive as german chancellor until the end of her term. a british yachtswoman has been rescued in the southern pacific, two days after her boat capsized, two—thousand miles west of cape horn. susie goodall, who's 29, had been taking part in the golden globe race. andy moore has the story. safety at last. the cargo ship that rescued susie goodall used its crane to winch her on board. she's reported to be uninjured and in good spirits. it was an ordeal that began 50 hours earlier, when this distress call, in the teeth of a ferocious storm. her ya

then we have an outside candidate, jens spahn. he's a well-known figure on the political scene, but he is not likely to make it to the end round of the vote. so these are the three main candidates what's happening today here is that we have a first vote, if there will be one candidate gaining the absolute majority in that first round, then we already have a result. but if not, there will be a second vote. results, final results most likely will be out around 5:00 cet. >> very big day for the cdu. and for people who have not been watching the intricacies of german politics, the bigger question for investors is what this ultimately means for the grand coalition. is there going to be a difference in behavior, whether we get akk there or merz there in terms of how they deal with their spd counterparts >> it's widely expected that the spd will not be happy with a grand coalition if merz is the marty leader having said that, there's also a counter argument two those thinking that the grand coalition would dissolve as soon as next year t