BERLIN, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- 47 percent of CDU supporters would like Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer to take the party lead, one more percentage point than in the previous month's survey, according to the latest DeutschlandTrend survey published on Friday.
Kramp-Karrenbauer puts herself ahead of her rival Friedrich Merz, who is supported by 37 percent but catches up to Kramp-Karrenbauer five percentage points compared to the previous month's survey.
At the CDU party conference Friday, 1,001 delegates will decide on Angela Merkel's successor to lead Germany's conservative party although Merkel is expected to finish her fourth term as chancellor until 2021.
A majority of Germans, 57 percent, want Merkel to remain chancellor until the next federal election, according the survey.
Candidate Jens Spahn, 38, failed to find prominent supporters within the CDU to publicly voice support for him. In the latest DeutschlandTrend, only 12 percent of CDU supporters want him to be the new party leader.
Merz' most prominent supporter is former finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble who told Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung earlier that "it would be best for the country if Friedrich Merz obtained a majority at the party conference."
Economics minister Peter Altmaier on the other hand is in favour of Kramp-Karrenbauer who had the best chances to "unite the CDU and win elections".
