Chancellor Merz Nominates New Ministers for Federal Cabinet
By Nino Kopaleishvili
Monday, August 3, 2026
The Bundestag, Germany's Federal Parliament, will start its fall session with an altered composition of the federal cabinet.
After announcing the cabinet reshuffle on Friday July 24, the media expected Chancellor Friedrich Merz to name successors of the ministers who would leave their posts by Wednesday, July 29.
According to the legislation, after appointment new ministers are to take an oath before the Bundestag, the lower house of Germany's legislature, in the first week of the Federal Parliament's opening in September.
On Wednesday, Chancellor Merz announced that Steffen Bilger, from conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), will be appointed as Transport Minister replacing his counterpart, Patrick Schnieder. Schnieder announced his resignation on Sunday, July 26. The media speculated about Schnieder's possible resignation, who managed Germany's railway system and infrastructure, sometime earlier before his own announcement.
New Minister Bilger has been a member of the German Bundestag since 2009. He was elected through a direct mandate. In 2025-2026, Bilger was the first parliamentary managing director of the CDU/CSU parliamentary faction at Bundestag.
The CDU/CSU parliamentary group comprises members from the Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union. In 2018-2021, Bilger acted as parliamentary state secretary to the Federal Minister of Transport and Digital Infrastructure.
A member of the Christian Democratic Union and Health Minister, Nina Warken is to take over the Chancellor's office and become the new chief of staff.
Warken will be replaced by Carsten Linnemann, from Christian Democratic Union, in the position of Health Minister.
Thorsten Frei, former head of the Chancellery, will lead the CDU/CSU conservative parliamentary group. CDU and CSU lawmakers, 208 members in total, are expected to cast a vote for the new candidate this summer, Deutsche Welle informs. Frei, a lawyer, has held the post of head of Chancellery in Friedrich Merz's government since 2025. At different times, he has been serving as deputy chair of CDU and mayor of Donaueschingen. His career mainly focuses on domestic affairs, EU relations, and legislative coordination.
According to Deutschland.de Philipp Amthor, from Christian Democratic Union, will remain in his post of Minister of State for Federal-State Relations at the Federal Chancellery. It is expected that Minister of State for Sport at the Federal Chancellery Christiane Schenderlein will also be substituted. The media reports that treasurer of the Christian Democratic Union Franziska Hoppermann might hold a new post as party's new general secretary.
The recent cabinet reshuffle has been caused by resignation of CDU/CSU conservative parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn over a surrogacy case, which has been incompatible with CDU's policy. The resignation was requested by Chancellor Merz himself.
The Christian Democratic Union is Germany's center-right political party aiming to ensure democratic development and governance of the country.
