Key facts
- Aigner is speaker of the Bavarian parliament and a member of the Christian Social Union, the Bavarian sister party of Merz's Christian Democrats.
- The Federal Convention, made up of lower house members and delegates from Germany's 16 state parliaments, is due to vote in January.
- Aigner, 61, served as federal agriculture minister under former Chancellor Angela Merkel and became Bavarian parliament speaker in 2018.
- Aigner trained as an electrical engineering technician and worked in electrical-systems development for helicopter maker Eurocopter.
- A senior Social Democrat, speaking anonymously, called Aigner an experienced, down-to-earth politician able to bring Germans together.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz nominated Ilse Aigner on November 9, 2026, as his conservatives' candidate to replace President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, whose term ends in March, in the largely ceremonial role. With the support of Merz's conservatives, their Social Democrat partners in the ruling coalition and the Greens, Aigner is very likely to be elected in January by the Federal Convention, which comprises members of the lower house of parliament and delegates from Germany's 16 federal state parliaments.