Jens Spahn resigns as CDU/CSU Bundestag leader after surrogacy birth in US, Merz calls it 'inevitable'

Jens Spahn, the leader of the conservative CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the German Bundestag, resigned on Saturday, 18 July 2026, after it emerged that he and his husband, journalist Daniel Funke, had become parents through surrogacy in the United States. The practice is prohibited in Germany and the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) voted in February to maintain that ban.

Resignation after surrogacy revelation

Spahn, 46, a former health minister under Angela Merkel, announced the birth of his son Georg on social media on 17 July. "My husband has become a dad, and I with him. Georg is all our happiness," he wrote. The news immediately triggered a backlash within the party, as surrogacy is illegal in Germany and the CDU has long opposed its legalisation. Spahn had publicly spoken against surrogacy and represents the party's right wing. By Saturday, he had submitted his resignation in a letter to the parliamentary group, stating that his personal happiness was incompatible with his political office.

In recent days, I have realised that my personal happiness — forming a family with my husband and becoming a father — is incompatible with my political office.

Party pressure and double standards

The scandal had been building for days. The CDU's federal congress in February 2026 reaffirmed the party's opposition to surrogacy, which has been banned in Germany since the Embryo Protection Act of 1990 (some sources cite 1991). Although German law does not penalise citizens who use surrogacy abroad, Spahn's decision to do so while opposing the practice drew accusations of hypocrisy. Several party figures demanded his resignation. Daniel Peters, CDU leader in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, told Bild that Spahn was "no longer tenable" because he had "deliberately placed himself above German law." Marion Rosin, treasurer of the CDU Women's Union, and Chris Günther, head of the party's women's organisation in the same state, also called for him to step down. Bundestag member Ellen Demuth denounced an "unbearable double standard" and said she no longer felt represented by her parliamentary leader. The controversy threatened to become the most serious internal crisis for the CDU since Merz took office, with regional elections looming in eastern states in September. Spahn had initially said he would put his mandate at the party's disposal after the summer parliamentary recess, but the pressure accelerated the timeline.

Chancellor Merz's response

Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who leads the CDU, had initially declined to comment publicly on Friday but later urged Spahn to resign, according to sources cited by DPA. After the resignation, Merz issued a statement calling the decision "right and inevitable" and emphasising that credibility is the supreme good in politics. He thanked Spahn for his "fundamental contribution" to recent reform projects and said he would propose a successor in consultation with the CSU's Markus Söder. Merz also stated that he saw no reason to change German law or the CDU's stance on surrogacy.

The decision is right and inevitable. Credibility is the supreme good in politics.

Spahn's personal statement and next steps

In his resignation letter, Spahn acknowledged that the issue had become "more complex than I had foreseen" and criticised the "increasing cruelty of public discourse." He urged all sides to maintain a humane tone despite political disagreements. Spahn and Funke married in 2017, the year Germany legalised same-sex marriage with full adoption rights. The couple had sought surrogacy in the United States, where the practice is legal in many states. The CDU/CSU parliamentary group will now select a new leader, with Merz promising a coordinated process with party bodies.