(April 19): Bavarian State Premier Markus Soeder flew into Berlin on Sunday night with support piling up for his bid to lead Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc into September’s election.

Just over a week after formally declaring his candidacy, Soeder has been trying to persuade members of Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union that his ability to connect with voters makes him a better bet to hold on to the chancellery than the party leader they elected barely three months ago. If the CDU does decide to go with Soeder, who heads its Bavarian sister party, it will mark a shocking departure for the alliance that has dominated German politics since World War II and could presage more dramatic shifts in the way the country is run.