Friedrich Merz was born on November 11, 1955, in Brilon in the Sauerland region.

He joined the CDU in 1972. After graduating from high school in Rüthen in 1975, he completed his military service until 1976.

From 1976 to 1981, Merz studied law and political science at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität in Bonn and Philipps-Universität Marburg. He passed his first state law examination in 1982. This was followed by a legal clerkship and, in 1985, his second state law examination. From 1985 to 1986, he served as a judge at the Saarbrücken District Court. He has been a lawyer since 1986.

From 1986 to 1989, Friedrich Merz worked at the German Chemical Industry Association (Verband der Chemischen Industrie e.V.).

From 1989 to 1994, he was a member of the European Parliament, and from 1994 to 2009, a member of the German Bundestag. From 1998 to 2000 and from 2002 to 2004, Friedrich Merz served as deputy chairman of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag. In between, he served as its chairman.
From 2005 to 2021, Merz worked as a partner, and from 2017 as senior counsel, at the international law firm Mayer Brown LLP.

He served as Vice President of the Economic Council of the CDU e.V. from 2019 to 2021. Since 2021, he has once again been a member of the German Bundestag and served as Chairman of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group from 2022 to 2025. He has been Chairman of the CDU of Germany since 2022.

Since May 6, 2025, Friedrich Merz has been Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany and governs with a coalition of the CDU, CSU, and SPD.