Bavaria's Economics Minister Hubert Aiwanger is dead

The Bavarian Economics Minister and deputy to Prime Minister Markus Söder, Hubert Aiwanger, is dead. As the ARD capital studio learned from government circles, he died in a Berlin hotel. Bild first reported on the death of the Free Voters politician.

According to information from the newspaper, 55-year-old Aiwanger was in the capital for the opening of his party's Berlin office. However, he is said to have not shown up for the appointment because he did not feel well. His body was later discovered in the hotel room, writes Bild.

State chairman of the Free Voters for 20 years

The 55-year-old has held the post of Economics Minister and Deputy Prime Minister in Bavaria since 2018. He has also been state chairman of the Bavarian Free Voters for 20 years and has also been federal chairman since 2010.

In the summer of 2023, Aiwanger was at the center of the so-called leaflet affair. He was accused of writing an anti-Semitic leaflet in his youth, which Aiwanger denied. Nevertheless, after harsh criticism, he was advised to resign at the time. However, Söder stuck to his deputy. Ultimately, Aiwanger's brother declared that he was the author of the leaflet.