SPD politician Karl Lauterbach has responded to criticism regarding Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s (CDU) behavior during the selection process for the successor to President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Telling the “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger”, the former Federal Minister of Health stated that whether or not the Chancellor played an unfortunate role in the choice is “not relevant.” He asserted, “The result counts, and we have a very good candidate available as a coalition.”
Lauterbach highly praised Ilse Aigner, the President of the Bavarian State Parliament (CSU), calling her an “ideal fit for the office.”
The Federal Assembly is scheduled to decide on the succession of Frank-Walter Steinmeier on January 30th. This assembly consists of all members of the Bundestag and the same number of members elected by the state parliaments. Any member of the Federal Assembly can submit candidate suggestions in writing to the President of the Bundestag, Julia Klöckner (CDU). The Union is expected to have the majority of members in the Federal Assembly and could, for instance, form a majority together with the SPD.
Markus Söder, the Prime Minister of Bavaria and CSU leader, had already put Aigner forward in April. She was previously considered a potential intra-party competitor to Söder ahead of the 2028 state elections. Aigner held the position of Federal Minister of Agriculture from October 2008 to September 2013. Between 2013 and 2018, she served as the State Minister of Agriculture in Bavaria and Deputy Prime Minister of Bavaria. Following this, she functioned as State Minister for Transport before being elected President of the State Parliament on November 5, 2018.
