Frustration is mounting within the Green Party over the delayed announcement of a candidate for the Federal Presidency election scheduled for January. According to Greens parliamentary group chair Britta Haßelmann, the longer the process continues to name a female Federal Presidential candidate, the more the procedure loses its dignity.
Haßelmann suggested that Friedrich Merz might not have complete control over the selection process. She criticized Merz for publicly asserting that the Union would nominate a woman, yet simultaneously failing to name a specific individual. “Why is the Union conducting its search process so publicly, instead of communicating its plans and campaigning for broad democratic support among other parties?” Haßelmann questioned.
Recently, several leading CDU politicians issued public praise for Ilse Aigner, the CSU politician and Bavarian state parliament president. Aigner herself had told “Die Zeit” that she wished for cross-party backing, including from the Greens.
The Federal Assembly will decide on the successor to Frank-Walter Steinmeier on January 30th. This body consists of all members of the Bundestag along with an equal number of members elected by the state representative bodies. Any member of the Federal Assembly can formally submit nomination proposals for the Federal President to the President of the Bundestag in writing.
Because the Union will account for the majority of members in the Federal Assembly, it could potentially form a majority coalition, for instance, together with the SPD. To date, no official nomination has been made. Markus Söder, the Minister-President of Bavaria and head of the CSU, had put Bavarian state parliament president Ilse Aigner (CSU) forward as a potential candidate back in April. She had previously been discussed as a possible internal rival to Söder ahead of the 2028 state election.
