GERMANY - Angela Merkel’s critics have often mocked her for making a fetish of “stability”. As she enters the twilight of her chancellorship, some of those critics — in Berlin and Brussels — are realising that stability might not be so bad after all. Yesterday’s news that Merkel’s struggling heir apparent Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (AKK) will step down as leader of the Christian Democrats and end her chancellorship aspirations has sparked a leadership battle that is being portrayed as a fight for the heart of a party dominated by Merkel for two decades. Der Spiegel’s Melanie Amann calls AKK’s retreat the squandering of a “historic opportunity” to ensure a “dignified” end to Merkel’s reign. Amid the recriminations, four men will probably be battling it out for the succession. Bloomberg profiles the candidates: “dark prince” Jens Spahn; AKK’s defeated rival Friedrich Merz; towering Bavarian Markus Söder; and a name that will be familiar in Brussels circles, former MEP Armin Laschet. He’s arguably the most centrist of the four and thus the continuity candidate.