Hubert Aiwanger is dead. Bavaria’s economy minister, deputy minister-president and leader of the Free Voters (Freie Wähler) was found lifeless in a Berlin hotel on Wednesday evening. He was 55. According to prosecutors, a preliminary autopsy found no sign of third-party involvement; further examinations continue. As of 6 November, 11:00.
What is known: on Wednesday afternoon Aiwanger was due to open his party’s new federal office near Berlin’s Gendarmenmarkt, but cancelled at short notice, reportedly feeling unwell. Digital minister Fabian Mehring stood in and wished him a speedy recovery on LinkedIn, assuming it was “quasi a cold”. According to Focus, cited by t-online, a hotel employee opened the room around 19:00 after party colleagues could not reach him. Tagesspiegel, citing investigators, reports no evidence of a crime; authorities initially assumed a natural death. No cause of death has been officially named.
Who runs the economy ministry now?
Minister-President Markus Söder called Aiwanger a “formative figure” and “a real character, a strong Bavarian, a good economy minister and a warm-hearted person”, adding that the government will carry on its joint work. State secretary Tobias Gotthardt (Free Voters), who was on a delegation trip to Singapore and is returning to Bavaria, is to lead the ministry temporarily, according to ORF. The ministry has called a press conference for 11:00 today.
Behind the mourning lies sober arithmetic. The CSU and Free Voters have governed since November 2023 with 122 of 203 seats in the Landtag. The CSU alone, with 85 seats, has no majority; the Free Voters hold 37 seats and four cabinet posts: Aiwanger, education minister Anna Stolz, environment minister Thorsten Glauber and Mehring. Aiwanger led the party into the Landtag in 2008 and into government in 2018. He even survived the 2023 leaflet affair that erupted shortly before the state election, with Söder keeping him in office.
Three paths now open
Most likely – this is our assessment, based on the numbers rather than inside information – the coalition continues. A break would cost the CSU its majority, alternatives would require the Greens or SPD, and the next regular election is not due until autumn 2028. What is open is how the posts are divided: the Free Voters are likely to claim the economy portfolio and the deputy’s job, but Söder has the final say, and new ministers need the Landtag’s approval under Bavaria’s constitution. A second scenario is a gain in leverage for the CSU: Söder could use the gap to renegotiate portfolios, for example energy, which sits within the economy ministry. A third is a succession fight inside the Free Voters. According to t-online, Mehring and parliamentary group leader Florian Streibl are named as possible party leaders; nothing is decided officially. Aiwanger was due to be confirmed as federal chair in mid-November anyway.
What is clear: a party built around one person must reorganise within weeks, and Bavaria’s government has lost its deputy two years before an election. How firm our assessment is depends on the coming days – above all whether the Free Voters quickly present a successor Söder can work with.
Sources: Bayerische Staatsregierung, Bayerisches Wirtschaftsministerium, ORF, Tagesspiegel, t-online
