German centre-right politician Jens Spahn has resigned as parliamentary group leader of the governing coalition after being accused of hypocrisy over his use of a surrogate mother in the United States to have a child. Surrogacy is prohibited in Germany, a policy backed by his Christian Democrat party and, several years ago, by Spahn himself.
“Credibility is the highest asset in politics.” — Chancellor Friedrich Merz
The forty-six-year-old former health minister revealed earlier this week that he and his husband, Daniel Funke, had become parents, with their use of a surrogate abroad prompting criticism from politicians across several parties, including his own. Announcing his resignation on Saturday, Spahn wrote that the "balancing act" between his private decision and the expectations placed on him as chairman had become greater than he anticipated.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who leads the CDU, called the decision "right" and "inevitable," writing on social media that "credibility is the highest asset in politics" and pledging to begin appointing a successor. German media reported Alexander Hoffmann, head of the Christian Social Union parliamentary group, would take over Spahn's duties in the interim.
The CDU signed a resolution reaffirming its support for a ban on surrogacy in February, and as health minister in 2020 Spahn had rejected liberal calls to relax it. In 2015 he wrote that "as a gay man and a Christian I find it personally very hard to warm to the idea of a rented womb." Surrogacy in Germany is punishable by up to three years in prison or a fine, making surrogacy abroad an important option for many couples.
Spahn said the "increasing relentlessness in public discourse" had given him "deep pause for thought," urging that "despite all clarity and decisiveness regarding the issues, let us always remain human in our tone." Hoffmann said Spahn's decision "deserves the utmost respect," signalling an attempt to close ranks within a party suddenly confronted with the gap between its stated values and the private lives of its leaders.
The CDU must now find a parliamentary leader untouched by the contradiction Spahn embodied — a search that may prove harder than the party admits.
Spahn's resignation resolves the personnel question and leaves the policy contradiction fully intact: Germany bans at home what its citizens can lawfully do abroad, which means the ban functions mainly as a means test. A serious legislature would either enforce the principle extraterritorially or admit it and regulate. Expect neither — the coalition has no appetite for a family-policy fight it can postpone.
