Friedrich Merz, a man who has never held a government role, is preparing to take the reins in Germany just as the country faces its biggest economic and diplomatic crises in decades and Europe looks urgently for a new generation of leaders for an era of transatlantic tension.

Friedrich Merz is poised to become Germany's next chancellor in a government led by the Christian Democratic Union and its sister party, the Christian Social Union. Merz has previously worked as a judge and lawyer and has served as the chairman of BlackRock Germany's supervisory board.

Friedrich Merz, the 69-year-old veteran German politician with a hardline stance on migration and an expensive aviation hobby, is the favorite to become the country’s next chancellor in the February 23 federal election.