Germany's Christian Democrats (CDU) said on Monday they would hold a congress on April 25 to pick a new leader who they want to succeed Chancellor Angela Merkel, scrambling to resolve a crisis shaking the party's hold on power.The decision on the succession timetable came after voters saddled the CDU with its worst result in a state vote in Hamburg on Sunday, punishing it for flirting with the far right in an eastern state and hastening a messy leadership battle.
