Before the election of the CDU board: Kohl’s grandson: “I share many of my grandfather’s political values”

At the CDU federal party conference on May 6, 2024, the delegates could see the 27-year-old Johannes Volkmann elected as the youngest member of the Federal Executive Board. His grandfather, former Chancellor Helmut Kohl, only made it to the Federal Executive Board in 1966 at the age of 36. In an interview with ntv.de, Volkmann talks about how his political goals differ from those of his grandfather.

ntv.de: You are running for the CDU federal executive board. If you are elected to the federal executive board by the delegates at the federal party conference at the beginning of May, what do you want to achieve there?

Johannes Volkmann: I consider it a great honor that the Junge Union and my regional association in Hesse proposed me for the federal executive board. If I am elected, I would like to ensure that the CDU goes into the next federal election campaign as a cosmopolitan and home-loving people’s party.

What exactly are your goals?

Firstly, we must do more for our own security and face the growing threat from Russian imperialism, but also the systemic competition with China. Europe must be able to defend its freedom itself, for this we need more joint procurement and a defense union. Secondly, I would like to advocate for intergenerational justice. It is becoming increasingly difficult for my generation to climb into the middle class through their own work. Purchasing home ownership is much less affordable for us than it was for our parents or grandparents. This has a lot to do with too high a taxation of middle incomes; this is where we need to start with reforms for an agenda for the hard-working people. Thirdly, we must defend cohesion in our society against extremism and, above all, the growing threat of Islamism.

What content from your generation would you like to bring in?

Our generation is faced with the question of how we want to live in freedom and peace in Europe tomorrow. The Chancellor talks about a turning point, but in practice he doesn’t do enough about it. The entire European Union delivered less artillery ammunition to Ukraine last year than North Korea delivered to Russia. A military defeat by Ukraine would not only be catastrophic on a human level, but would also threaten the security of NATO, including here in Germany. It is our peers who are sitting in the trenches in Ukraine instead of in the lecture hall.

What about climate change, an issue that affects many people of your generation? This is what “Fridays for Future” or “Last Generation” show. How do you see that?

I don’t think that “Fridays for Future” or the “Last Generation” represent young people in Germany. Many are rather annoyed by their moral self-aggrandizement. Take a look at the first-time voter results in state elections in Hesse. We will only win the fight against climate change if Germany develops a role model for other countries. If we destroy our industrial production in Germany through impractical regulations, if it moves to China and we ultimately import climate-damaging steel from China, we will not be helping the global climate. Effective climate policy means: using price signals such as certificate trading and investing in innovation and research, for example in nuclear fusion. However, bans on, for example, the combustion engine, sticking to main roads or morally charged discussions about flying shame are less effective.

At the age of twelve you joined the Student Union Hessen. Have you ever considered joining a party other than the CDU?

I wasn’t committed to the CDU, but I realized quite early on that I could find a political home there with my beliefs. In addition to your own values, you quickly meet a lot of committed people and realize that you are on the same wavelength as them.

At the age of twelve, many people still don’t have a solid opinion.

Of course you think differently about politics when you’re twelve years old. In my home community of Lahnau, my elementary school was closed by an SPD-led district government – even though a majority of our town was massively against the closure. The primary school had shaped the community for decades and was the heart of our village community. This experience politicized me. At that time I joined the student union.

Especially at the age of twelve, caregivers such as parents or grandparents still have a lot of influence. Didn’t your family background influence you?

Every person is shaped by their socialization. My parents were not CDU members at the time. It wouldn’t have been a problem for them if I had gone to another party.

Really?

Yes. You make it far too easy for yourself if you think: Kohl’s grandson was born into a CDU family, that’s why he joined the CDU and is now doing CDU politics. It wasn’t like that. My grandfather has many relatives; I am the only one in our family who plays politics. It is my own convictions that lead me into active politics.

What would you have been if you hadn’t become a politician?

I studied economics and contemporary China studies. Given this background, I could have imagined working for a German company in China or for Chinese companies in Europe. I don’t go into politics because of a lack of career alternatives, but because I am convinced that this is where I can best utilize my talents.

You said that many people see you as Helmut Kohl’s grandson. In contrast, it is important to you to be perceived as an independent person. Don’t you think you have certain privileges and enjoy a certain amount of media attention precisely because you are Kohl’s grandson?

I share many of my grandfather’s political values, such as his commitment to European integration and securing peace through our own strength. I achieved my achievements independently in my studies, local politics and in my career. That’s why I hope to be judged by it.

What do you mean exactly?

I am chairman of the Lahn-Dill district council and recently became CDU district chairman. There was a development in my local press: initially it was about who my grandfather was. If you read the coverage today, it’s about me as a person and my work in the district.

To what extent is Kohl a role model for you as a grandfather or as a statesman?

With regard to German unity and European integration, he is a role model for me as a statesman. It was clear to him: only a policy of one’s own strength and backbone can help against authoritarian systems. A good example of this is the NATO double decision. Despite considerable political headwinds, he stuck to the national goal of German reunification. But there are also topics to which I have a different relationship than he does.

Which?

For example, the topic of innovation and technology is closer to me. Digitalization had a different significance during his time in office…

Did he teach you anything beyond politics?

Yes. I have fond personal memories of him, but I don’t want to comment on them publicly.

And in the CDU in general? Who is more of a role model for you, Angela Merkel or Friedrich Merz?

Angela Merkel and Friedrich Merz are different leaders. Angela Merkel stood for reliability in a time of many upheavals and crises – regardless of mistakes made in the areas of migration, pensions and energy. Under her, Germany was the EU’s anchor of stability for 16 years. The traffic light lost this trust in a short time.

And Friedrich Merz?

Friedrich Merz stands for a renewal of the CDU from its political roots and for the willingness to correct mistakes. Unlike the current Chancellor, he can explain positions and argues against his convictions. And that is exactly what is good for our democracy. We must bring debates about the best political ideas back to the center and not leave the sovereignty of interpretation to the political fringes.

How do you want to achieve this?

By setting the right priorities: a state that functions in its basic tasks. A tax and social system in which the hardworking is rewarded. That means: tax relief for medium-sized businesses and the abolition of citizens’ money in its current form. A turning point in migration policy so that we become more attractive to skilled workers on the one hand and end the migration crisis on the other. This means: only those who have an entry permit should come to the EU. Anyone who enters Europe illegally should be accommodated in a safe third country. The traffic light, on the other hand, gets lost in identity politics and symbolic issues such as cannabis legalization or the Self-Determination Act. The three coalition partners do not have a common vision of where they want to lead Germany and the EU.

You want to run for the federal election in the summer of 2025. This takes you from local politics to federal politics. As a member of the Bundestag, how would you maintain ties with local voters?

I am running for the nomination in my constituency in September. When it comes to constituency work, there are many role models for me in the Hessian CDU state group.

Could you imagine becoming chancellor at some point?

As a 27-year-old, I think pride is out of place.

Rebecca Wegmann spoke to Johannes Volkmann