German candidate sorry for the laughter of the scene in the flood visit

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The frontrunner to succeed Chancellor Angela Merkel in Germany’s September elections has apologized for a scene in which he was seen laughing in the background as the country’s president made a statement about devastating floods in western Germany.

Armin Laschet, Merkel’s center-right Union bloc candidate to be Germany’s next leader, is also governor of North Rhine-Westphalia – one of two hard hit by last week’s floods. On Saturday, he visited the town of Irfstadt, which has been the scene of a dramatic rescue effort after the land receded, with President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

While Steinmeier made a statement to reporters after the visit, Laschet and another group stood in the background. The pictures showed him turning to someone else and laughing.

Lars Klingbeil, general secretary of the centre-left Social Democrats, told Bild am Sonntag newspaper on Sunday that Laschet’s behavior was “inappropriate and appalling”.

“They say that people’s personalities emerge in times of crisis,” he added.

Laschet took to Twitter Saturday night to explain his position and thank Steinmeier for his visit.

“The fate of those affected, about which we have heard in many conversations, is important to us,” he wrote. “So I feel even more sorry for the impression created by a conversational situation. This was inappropriate and I am sorry.”

The Union bloc is currently ahead in opinion polls ahead of the ecological Green Party, with the Social Democrats in third place. The elections will be held on September 26.

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