BERLIN (AP) — Prominent members of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative party are calling for an end to internal sniping after the latest in a string of poor election performances.

Merkel's center-right Christian Democratic Union finished third in an election Sunday in Thuringia, a state it once dominated. That result prompted criticism of both the chancellor and her successor as party leader, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer.

Leading conservative and one-time Merkel rival Friedrich Merz assailed Merkel for her "inertia and lack of leadership."

Merz's intervention itself drew sharp criticism. By Thursday, a call criticizing "self-destructive" behavior by "individuals" and assailing "attacks (that) are politically mindless as well as excessive in tone and style" had gathered support from 28 party lawmakers.

The CDU will hold a regular party congress next month.