(de-news.net) – As support for a female head of state grows across party lines, CSU leader Markus Söder is advocating for the Bavarian Parliamentary President Ilse Aigner (CSU) to be Germany’s next president. Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and the CDU/CSU leadership as a whole have not yet made a final decision, while a number of SPD and Green lawmakers have stated that they are open to Aigner’s candidacy.

Bavarian Premier and Christian Social Union (CSU) leader Markus Söder has renewed his party’s push to nominate Ilse Aigner as Germany’s next President, arguing that the CSU has never held either the chancellorship or the presidency in the Federal Republic’s 75-year history. Although the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) has expressed support for a woman to assume the largely ceremonial office of head of state, it has yet to put forward a candidate, Söder noted. He maintained that presidential qualifications should be judged primarily by authority, democratic legitimacy and personal character rather than professional background. Söder presented Aigner, who heads Bavaria’s state parliament, as meeting those requirements and cautioned against allowing the selection process to deteriorate into political horse-trading.

Söder emphasized that the choice of Germany’s next President should be negotiated jointly by the CDU, CSU and Social Democratic Party (SPD), rather than determined by either conservative party acting alone. He called for an agreement well ahead of the election, preferably in November, signaling his preference for an early resolution to the nomination process.

Bär and Friedrich have recently backed Aigner

Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär of the CSU has also argued that Germany is ready for a woman to become president and expressed support for Aigner. Cem Özdemir, the Green-Party premier of Baden-Württemberg, has called on the CDU, CSU, SPD and Greens to agree on a joint candidate who could assume the presidency with broad political backing. He argued that a shared nomination would strengthen the officeholder’s position and provide a foundation for leading the country through a difficult period. Özdemir also supported electing a woman as Germany’s next head of state, saying the time had come to break with the tradition of male presidents. He did not name a preferred candidate.

Hans-Peter Friedrich, a former German Interior Minister and former CSU parliamentary group leader, also expressed confidence in Aigner’s prospects, despite Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s failure to address the question at the CSU party conference in Munich. Friedrich cited Aigner’s decades of political experience and her ability to work constructively with representatives across the political spectrum, arguing that no alternative had emerged to challenge her candidacy convincingly. He attributed Merz’s reluctance to announce a decision to tactical considerations, given the number of political figures and groups seeking a say in the nomination.

Electoral arithmetic puts the conservative alliance in focus

The election to succeed President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (SPD) is scheduled for next January. The CDU/CSU alliance and the SPD together hold a comfortable majority in the Federal Convention, the body responsible for electing the president, making cooperation between the parties central to the selection process. Given its parliamentary strength, the conservative alliance is expected to seek the leading role in proposing a candidate.

Aigner, a former Federal Agriculture Minister who has also been discussed as a possible successor to Söder in Bavaria, has repeatedly received the CSU leader’s backing. Her candidacy has also attracted interest beyond the CSU. Saarland Premier Anke Rehlinger of the SPD has proposed Aigner for the Presidency, while Özdemir described her in August as an interesting potential candidate. However, no cross-party agreement has been announced.

SPD Bundestag member Ralf Stegner has criticized the CDU and CSU leadership for handling Aigner’s potential candidacy primarily through tactical calculations. He argued that the approach reflected broader problems within the leadership of the conservative parties and showed insufficient consideration for both the dignity of the presidency and Aigner herself. At the same time, Stegner described the Bavarian parliamentary president as a credible candidate to become Germany’s first female head of state in the postwar era. His remarks highlighted the distinction between the political maneuvering surrounding the nomination and Aigner’s qualifications, which he treated as separate issues.

SPD presses for a decision

Ahead of Merz’s address to the CSU conference in Munich, the SPD called for progress toward a decision on the next President. Dirk Wiese, parliamentary managing director of the SPD’s Bundestag group, argued that the time had come for a woman to assume the country’s highest office. Wiese emphasized the importance of a candidate who combined integrity and public standing with the ability to build bridges across social and political divisions. He also explicitly included Aigner among the potential candidates, reinforcing the support for her candidacy among some SPD figures.

Other potential candidates mentioned in conservative circles in recent weeks include Hessian Premier Boris Rhein (CDU) and former Federal Constitutional Court judge Udo di Fabio. Several SPD politicians and representatives of the CDU-affiliated Women’s Union have strongly advocated choosing a woman for the presidency, adding to calls for a departure from the country’s history of male heads of state.

Thorsten Frei (CDU), chairman of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, said the conservative alliance would agree on a candidate to succeed Steinmeier after the state elections scheduled for the fall. The timetable suggests that the alliance may defer its decision until those elections have concluded, even as Söder and other political figures press for an earlier agreement. The election as such will take place on 30 January 2027, while discussions among the parties about a possible cross-party candidate are still ongoing. With several names under discussion and calls for a female president gaining support across party lines, negotiations will determine whether Aigner can secure consistent backing.