Deputy prime minister and economic affairs minister Maxime Verhagen does not want to lead the Christian Democrats into the next election, he said in an interview with Elsevier magazine.

‘If I was a candidate, it would be an excuse for all those people who want to restart the debate about where the party is heading,’ Verhagen is quoted as saying.
Since the 2010 election, support for the CDA has crumbled, and the party is now at around 15 seats in the opinion polls. It has 21 seats in parliament.
No official leader
Verhagen led the 2010 election campaign and is seen as CDA leader, although technically the party is without one.
The minister told Elsevier he had found it hard to withdraw from the leadership race but that it was in the interests of the CDA to do so.
The CDA will debate the leadership issue at its conference on January 21.