Friedrich Merz nominates Ilse Aigner for the position of President of Germany

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has decided to nominate Ilse Aigner for the office of president of Germany, during a meeting with CDU leaders held in Berlin on Sunday evening. Aigner, the current president of Bavaria’s regional parliament, is expected to be officially nominated on Monday and to replace Frank-Walter Steinmeier, whose term ends after he has held the office since 2017.

Support from the parties in the governing coalition, made up of the CDU/CSU and SPD, makes Aigner’s election on January 30 considered almost certain. Germany’s president is elected by approximately 1,260 members of the Federal Convention, mainly lawmakers from the Bundestag and Bundesrat, along with representatives of civil society.

At 61, Ilse Aigner would become the first woman to hold the office, which has so far been held exclusively by men. A former agriculture minister in Angela Merkel’s government, she is also appreciated by SPD leaders for her political experience and moderate style. Her popularity is seen as a possible balancing factor at a time marked by the rise of the far-right AfD party and political polarization.