Who is Ilse Aigner, leading candidate for Germany’s next president?

Developed over time first seen 3 hours ago

DW · 3 hours ago

Ilse Aigner has emerged as the leading candidate to succeed Frank-Walter Steinmeier as Germany’s president, after Chancellor Friedrich Merz backed her. The role is largely ceremonial, but the president is the country’s head of state and is regarded as a moral authority; if elected, Aigner would be Germany’s first female president and the first from the CSU.

Aigner, 61, trained as a telecommunications technician and worked for helicopter manufacturer Eurocopter before entering Bavarian politics in 1994. She served in the Bundestag from 1998 to 2013, including six years as agriculture and consumer protection minister, then returned to Bavaria, where she has been state parliament president for eight years. The Federal Convention votes on 30 January 2027; the CDU, CSU and SPD majority makes her election highly likely.

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In short

Merz backs Ilse Aigner for Germany’s presidency.
She could become the country’s first female president.
A majority in the Federal Convention makes her election likely.

How this story developed

42 minutes ago Ilse Aigner has emerged as the leading candidate to succeed Frank-Walter Steinmeier as Germany’s president, after Chancellor Friedrich Merz backed her.

Explained simply

Germany’s president is the country’s head of state, a role that is largely ceremonial. The president represents Germany at home and abroad and is also seen as a source of moral authority. The office is separate from that of the chancellor, who leads the government.

Ilse Aigner is a politician from Bavaria and a member of the Christian Social Union (CSU), a party that works closely with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) elsewhere in Germany. Before entering politics, she trained as a telecommunications technician and worked for a helicopter maker. She later served in Germany’s federal parliament and as agriculture minister, then returned to Bavarian politics.

The president is chosen by the Federal Convention, a body made up of national lawmakers and representatives of Germany’s states. Aigner’s possible election would be notable because no woman and no CSU member has previously held the presidency.