German Chancellor Angela Merkel says she will not run again as the leader of her Christian Democratic Union (CDU), but will remain chancellor until 2021. Her conservatives suffered massive losses in two state elections.

• Chancellor Angela Merkel has confirmed that she will not be running for re-election as party leader of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU).
• Merkel said she still plans on remaining in her post as chancellor, but will step down in 2021 when her current term finishes. She once said that party leadership and chancellorship must go hand-in-hand.
• Her decision follows heavy losses for her conservatives in two recent regional elections, most recently on Sunday in Hesse.
• Merkel allies and critics are stepping up to replace Merkel, including CDU Secretary General Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, Health Minister Jens Spahn, and former CDU/CSU parliamentary bloc leader Friedrich Merz.

Merkel says we should “wait and see” who would replace her as the CDU head.

“I am someone who can work very well together wit a lot of different people, and I think I have a reputation for it.”

13:40 SPD chief Andrea Nahles says Merkel has done an “extraodinary” job at the helm of the CDU, steering it out of deep crisis. Nahles also told reporters that changes at the top of the CDU might benefit the grand coalition by smoothing over conflicts between the partners.