The Christian Union intends to nominate Ilse Aigner, a leader in the Christian Social Party (Bavarian), for the position of Federal President of Germany, and her nomination is scheduled to be officially announced on Monday (November 9, 2026).
If elected on January 30, Aigner will become the first woman to assume the presidency of the country in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany, after twelve men who held this position before her. She will also be the first head of state who did not receive a university education, and the first unmarried person to hold this position, according to the public German news website “Tagesschau.”
If she wins the elections, she will succeed Frank-Walter Steinmeier of the Social Democratic Party, who will end his second presidential term on March 18, 2027, after ten years in office, and is not entitled to run for the position again, according to the German newspaper “Berliner Morgen Post.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz refrains from revealing the name of his candidate, but he said that he has decided his position and believes that “the time has come to elect a woman to the presidency of Germany,” according to the German News Agency.
Who is Ilse Aigner?
Aigner, who is 61 years old, comes from the town of Feldkirchen-Westerham in the Upper Bavaria region. After completing basic education in 1981, she did not receive a university education and instead received training to become a technician in the field of radio and television, and then developed her skills to become an electrical systems technician for helicopters, according to the public German news website “Tagesschau”.
Ilse Aigner entered political life in 1994. At the age of twenty-nine, she was elected to the Bavarian state parliament. At a time when the political sphere was restricted to men, Aigner emerged as an exceptional figure.
Aigner is an experienced politician; After ten years spent as a member of the German Parliament, she assumed the position of Federal Minister of Agriculture from 2008 to 2013, after which she served as Deputy Prime Minister of the State of Bavaria, and since 2018, Aigner has served as Speaker of the Bavarian State Parliament.
"A common woman"
Aigner is known to be humble, close to people, and very sympathetic and kind, according to the news website of the German channel ZDF.
Aigner describes herself as a “common woman,” not a populist. “Simple, hard-line, or quick answers do not work,” she says. “We need the broadest possible consensus and the unification of society.”
On a personal level, Aigner overcame cancer twice during her life, the first time in her childhood and the second later when she was serving as Federal Minister of Agriculture.
Aigner is distinguished by her possession of a wide and strong network of relationships in Berlin and Bavaria, in addition to her great ability to listen rather than deliver resonant speeches, as is the case with some politicians, according to the Berliner Morgen Post newspaper.
Aigner also presents herself as a defender of democracy, and has always set limits for the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany party in her capacity as Speaker of the Bavarian state parliament. She has previously said that extremist movements seek to create deep divisions with the aim of changing the nature of the country, and she adds firmly: “I do not want this alternative country!”
But she is less able to improvise in her speeches, as she often reads her texts from written papers, and is sometimes criticized for her speeches, which are described as “familiar and general,” rather than delving into the depths of the issues, according to the Berliner Morgenpost newspaper.
Who will play the role of "First Gentleman"?
Because men often hold the highest positions in the state, their wives are made the first ladies of the state, and they carry out the tasks that this position entails, such as accompanying the president on state visits, opening events, and supporting children’s issues, education, and social projects, according to the Berliner Morgen Post newspaper.
Although the First Lady does not hold an official position in the state and does not receive a salary, and is not mentioned at all in the constitution, for decades she has remained a constant part of the public landscape of the Republic.
The fact that Aigner is an unmarried woman makes the position of “First Lady” empty, which may spark widespread discussion in conservative circles if she is nominated for the position of federal president, according to the German newspaper “Berliner Morgen Post”.
If Aigner is elected President of Germany, the role of “First Lady” will not remain vacant, as the President can assume these duties herself, which means more obligations and tasks falling on her shoulders.
The other option proposed to ease the burden on the president's shoulders is for organizations to search for new sponsors from the fields of culture, science, or civil society. As for official visits, the state protocol will have to redesign the accompanying programs, which were previously specifically prepared to suit the partner.
Aigner enjoys wide support and support in political circles
Aigner is considered the most likely candidate for this position, and she has received widespread support. In the past few days, an increasing number of members of the Christian Democratic Union have expressed their support for her.
Torsten Frei, head of the Christian Union parliamentary bloc, also expressed a positive attitude towards her, and for his part, Lars Klingbeil, head of the Social Democratic Party, welcomed Aigner's nomination, and said that she has a "tremendous ability to bring together and unify", adding that she is "a politician who is very close to the people, and speaks to them as equals, and this is very important."
The same applies to the Green Party, as the party expressed openness to nominating Aigner for the position of president, and Britta Hasselmann, head of the party’s parliamentary bloc, confirmed that it is right and appropriate for a woman, for the first time in 75 years, to hold the highest position in the state.
How is the federal president elected?
The new President of Germany is elected by the "German Federal Assembly", which consists of all 630 members of the German Parliament (Bundestag), in addition to a similar number of delegates who are chosen by the German states. The number of delegates allocated to each state is determined according to the number of its population, according to the German newspaper "Tages Schau".
The voting process takes place secretly, and in order to win, the candidate must obtain an absolute majority of the votes of the members of the Federal Assembly in the first or second round of voting. If no candidate is able to achieve this during the first two rounds, obtaining a relative majority in a third round is sufficient to win, and the winning candidate must announce within two days whether he accepts his election, according to the official website of the German Federal Ministry of the Interior.
