The Minister-president (, pronounced as /de/) is the head of state and government in thirteen of Germany's sixteen states.
In Berlin, the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen and the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg the heads of the state hold different titles:
In the former states of Baden and Württemberg-Hohenzollern, defunct since 1952, the heads of state held the title State President (Staatspräsident).
Nevertheless, in Germany, it is common to refer to all sixteen heads of the states as minister-presidents, if they are referred to collectively. For example, the regular meetings of the sixteen office-holders are called Conference of minister-presidents (Ministerpräsidentenkonferenz).
As the German constitution (Basic Law) defines the Federal Republic of Germany as a federation, each German state enjoys sovereignty, limited only by the Basic Law. The Basic Law gives the states a broad discretion to determine their respective state structure, only stating that each German state has to be a social and democratic republic under the rule of law (Article 28.1). In practice all German states have adopted some form of a mixed parliamentary republican system: Despite some differences between the individual state constitutions, the minister-presidents have both typical powers of an executive leader (for example appointing and dismissing cabinet members or defining the political guidelines of the cabinet) and typical powers and functions of a head of state (for example the power to grant pardons on behalf of the state and to perform certain ceremonial duties). As such, their powers and functions resemble those of an executive president, but in contrast to a presidential system, they are not directly elected and depend on the confidence of the respective state parliament. Thus, the constitutional position of a minister-president differs from that of the Chancellor of Germany at the federal level, who only holds the role of a chief executive leader, while the President of Germany performs the more ceremonial powers and functions of the federal head of state.
Even though all sixteen Minister-presidents hold roughly the same position in their states, there are also some important differences between the provisions of the state constitutions with regard to the head of state and government. This begins with the election procedure: All Minister-presidents are elected by the state parliament, but while in some states a majority of parliament members is needed for a successful election, in other states a simple majority (a plurality of votes cast) is sufficient. The same goes for recall procedures: In some states, the parliament may simply vote an officeholder out of office, while in other states the parliament has to elect a new officeholder at the same time (Constructive vote of no confidence). In Bavaria, the constitution does not allow a recall of the minister-president at all.In fifteen states, the state constitution defines the minister-president as the leader of the cabinet, giving him or her the right, to determine the cabinet's political guidelines, but this is not the case in Bremen, where the President of the Senate and Mayor only has a ceremonial precedence over the other cabinet members. There are also differences regarding the Minister-president power, to shape his or her cabinet: While in some states the office-holder is free to appoint or dismiss cabinet ministers at his or her discretion, in other states there are limits to this power, while the constitution of Bremen does not give the President of the Senate and Mayor any power, to directly influence the composition of his or her cabinet.
| State | Title | Election threshold | Recall procedure | Position in cabinet | Power to shape the cabinet | Right to grant pardon | Minimum age | Other provisions | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baden-Württemberg[2] | Minister-president | majority of members | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | cabinet appointments subject to parliamentary approval, the state parliament may recall individual cabinet ministers with a two-thirds majority | yes | 35 | ||
| Free State of Bavaria[3] | Minister-president | simple majority | none | guideline competence | cabinet appointments subject to parliamentary approval | yes | 40 | ||
| Berlin[4] | Governing Mayor | simple majority | vote of no confidence, but if the state parliament does not elect a new Governing Mayor within 21 days, the former officeholder is reinvested automatically | guideline competence | full | no (whole cabinet) | 18 (de facto) | ||
| Brandenburg[5] | Minister-President | majority of members (first and second ballot), plurality (third ballot) | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | full | yes | 18 (de facto) | ||
| Bremen[6] | President of the Senate and Mayor | simple majority | constructive vote of no confidence | ceremonial precedence | none, the parliament elects and dismisses all cabinet members | no (whole cabinet) | 18 | may not be a member of the state parliament | |
| Hamburg[7] | First Mayor | majority of members | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | cabinet appointments subject to parliamentary approval | no (whole cabinet) | 18 | may not be a member of the state parliament | |
| Hesse[8] | Minister-president | majority of members | vote of no confidence | guideline competence | dismissal of cabinet members subject to parliamentary approval | yes | 18 (de facto) | members of noble houses, which have reigned in Germany before 1918, are ineligible for office | |
| Lower Saxony[9] | Minister-president | majority of members or plurality, if the state parliament does not elect a minister-president in 21 days and does not dissolve itself thereupon | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | cabinet appointments subject to parliamentary approval | yes | 18 (de facto) | ||
| Mecklenburg-Vorpommern[10] | Minister-president | majority of members or plurality, if the state parliament does not elect a minister-president in 28 days and does not dissolve itself thereupon | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | full | yes | 18 (de facto) | ||
| North Rhine-Westphalia[11] | Minister-President | majority of members (first ballot), simple majority (second and third ballot), runoff (fourth ballot) | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | full | yes | 18 | has to be a member of the state parliament | |
| Rhineland-Palatinate[12] | Minister-president | majority of members | vote of no confidence | guideline competence | full | yes | 18 (de facto) | ||
| Saarland[13] | Minister-president | majority of members | vote of no confidence | guideline competence | cabinet appointments and dismissals subject to parliamentary approval | no (whole cabinet) | 18 (de facto) | ||
| Free State of Saxony[14] | Minister-president | majority of members (first ballot), simple majority (following ballots) | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | full | yes | 18 (de facto) | ||
| Saxony-Anhalt[15] | Minister-president | majority of members or simple majority, if the state parliament does not elect a minister-president in 14 days and does not dissolve itself thereupon | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | full | yes | 18 (de facto) | ||
| Schleswig-Holstein[16] | Minister-president | majority of members (first and second ballot), plurality (third ballot) | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | full | yes | 18 (de facto) | ||
| Free State of Thuringia[17] | Minister-president | majority of members (first and second ballot), plurality (third ballot) | constructive vote of no confidence | guideline competence | full | yes | 18 (de facto) |
By virtue of their position in the Bundesrat, the Minister-presidents can exert considerable influence on national politics within the federal structure. Along with several of their ministers, they commonly represent their state in the Bundesrat (the German Federal Council). Each state government is represented in the Bundesrat by three to six delegates, depending on the state's population.
The minister-presidents appoint one (or in some states two) member(s) of their cabinet as their deputies. In most states the deputy of the minister-president holds the title Deputy Minister-president. Brandenburg, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Schleswig-Holstein have a higher ranking First Deputy Minister-president and a lower ranking Second Deputy Minister-president. Bavaria has a higher ranking Deputy Minister-president and a lower ranking Additional Deputy Minister-president. Berlin has two equally ranking Mayors deputizing for the Governing Mayor, while Bremen has a Mayor deputizing for the President of the Senate and Mayor and Hamburg has a Second Mayor deputizing for the First Mayor.
Their duties and functions mirror roughly those of the Vice Chancellor of Germany on federal level. Most importantly, the Deputy Minister-president (or equivalent) temporarily act as Minister-president in case of the office-holder's death or incapacity until the end of the incapacity or the election of a successor by the state parliament. An exception to this are the regulations in the state constitution of Bavaria (Art. 44.3), which designates both the Deputy Minister-president (for internal affairs) and the President of the Landtag (for the external representation) as acting successors. Resigning minister-presidents normally stay in office as acting minister-presidents (or equivalent) themselves until a successor is elected. This is however not the case, if the reason for the resignation is some form of constitutional, legal or traditional incompatibility with an office, on which the resigning office-holder has entered: The Basic Law prohibits the President of Germany from holding office in a state government at the same time (Art. 55.1). According to the Federal Constitutional Court Act, the same applies to judges on the Federal Constitutional Court (§ 3.3). Simultaneous membership in the Bundestag or the federal government is not prohibited for a Minister-president (or other members of a state government) under federal law, but in some states (for example North Rhine-Westphalia) it is forbidden by the state constitution and generally it is not in line with political tradition. Therefore, office-holders elected or appointed to such office usually resign and refrain from continuing to hold the office of Minister-president on an acting basis, leaving that role to their deputy.[18]
Normally, such full replacements last only a few days or even a few hours, but there have also been cases in which such acting Minister-president have had to remain in office for a longer period because the election of a new regular incumbent had proved difficult; this occurred for example in Schleswig-Holstein in 1987/88: The state election on 13 September 1987 had resulted in a stalemate between the centre-right bloc of CDU and FDP, which supported the incumbent Uwe Barschel, and the centre-left parties SPD and SSW, each with 37 seats. Due to the weak election results for the CDU and above all the Barschel affair, a supposed election-fraud scandal, Barschel declared his resignation with effect from 2 October and died a few days later in a hotel in Geneva under circumstances that have not been clarified to this day. As a result, the previous deputy Henning Schwarz became acting Minister-president. Attempts to elect a new Minister-president in the state parliament failed because of the stalemate, so the parliament dissolved itself and early state elections were held on 8 May 1988. The SPD emerged from these with an absolute majority of seats and its leading candidate Björn Engholm was elected Minister-president on 31 May. Schwarz thus held office as acting Minister-president for 242 days.
The longest-serving incumbent office-holder is Reiner Haseloff, who has served as the Minister-President of Saxony-Anhalt since 19 April 2011. Alexander Schweitzer, the Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate (since 10 July 2024), is the shortest-serving incumbent.
| Portrait | Name Cabinet | Title | entered office | Party | Deputy Title | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winfried Kretschmann Kretschmann III | 12 May 2011 | Thomas Strobl (CDU) Deputy Minister-President | |||||
| Markus Söder Söder III | 16 March 2018 | Hubert Aiwanger (Free Voters) Deputy Minister-President Ulrike Scharf (CSU) Additional Deputy Minister-President | |||||
| Kai Wegner Wegner | 27 April 2023 | CDU | Franziska Giffey (SPD) Mayor Stefan Evers (CDU) Mayor | ||||
| Dietmar Woidke Woidke III | 28 August 2013 | SPD | Michael Stübgen (CDU) First Deputy Minister-President Ursula Nonnenmacher (Alliance 90/The Greens) Second Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Andreas Bovenschulte Bovenschulte II | 15 August 2019 | SPD | Maike Schaefer (Alliance 90/The Greens) Deputy President of the Senate and Mayor | ||||
| Peter Tschentscher Tschentscher II | 28 March 2018 | SPD | Katharina Fegebank (Alliance 90/The Greens) Second Mayor | ||||
| Boris Rhein Rhein II | 31 May 2022 | CDU | Kaweh Mansoori (SPD) Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Stephan Weil Weil III | 19 February 2013 | SPD | Julia Hamburg (Alliance 90/The Greens) Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Manuela Schwesig Schwesig II | 4 July 2017 | SPD | Simone Oldenburg (The Left) Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Hendrik Wüst Wüst II | 27 October 2021 | CDU | Mona Neubaur (Alliance 90/The Greens) Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Alexander Schweitzer Schweitzer | 10 July 2024 | SPD | Katharina Binz (Alliance 90/The Greens) Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Anke Rehlinger Rehlinger | 25 April 2022 | SPD | Jürgen Barke (SPD) Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Michael Kretschmer Kretschmer II | 13 December 2017 | CDU | Wolfram Günther (Alliance 90/The Greens) First Deputy Minister-President Martin Dulig (SPD) Second Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Reiner Haseloff Haseloff III | 19 April 2011 | CDU | Armin Willingmann (SPD) First Deputy Minister-President Lydia Hüskens (FDP) Second Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Daniel Günther Günther II | 28 June 2017 | CDU | Monika Heinold (Alliance 90/The Greens) Deputy Minister-President | ||||
| Bodo Ramelow Ramelow II | 4 March 2020 | The Left | Georg Maier (SPD) First Deputy Minister-President Anja Siegesmund (Alliance 90/The Greens) Second Deputy Minister-President |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||
| 1 | 80px | Reinhold Maier (1889–1971) | 25 April 1952 | 30 September 1953 resigned | FDP | ||
| 2 | Gebhard Müller (1900–1990) | 30 September 1953 | 17 December 1958 resigned appointed to the Federal Constitutional Court | CDU | |||
| 3 | Kurt Georg Kiesinger (1904–1988) | 17 December 1958 | 1 December 1966 resigned elected Chancellor | CDU | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Wolfgang Haußmann (FDP) served as acting Minister-President from 1 to 16 December 1966. | ||||||
| 4 | Hans Filbinger (1913–2007) | 16 December 1966 | 30 August 1978 resigned | CDU | |||
| 5 | Lothar Späth (1937–2016) | 30 August 1978 | 22 January 1991 resigned | CDU | |||
| 6 | Erwin Teufel (born 1939) | 22 January 1991 | 21 April 2005 resigned | CDU | |||
| 7 | Günther Oettinger (born 1953) | 21 April 2005 | 10 February 2010 resigned appointed to the European Commission | CDU | |||
| 8 | Stefan Mappus (born 1966) | 10 February 2010 | 12 May 2011 | CDU | |||
| 9 | Winfried Kretschmann (born 1948) | 12 May 2011 | Incumbent | Alliance 90/The Greens |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||
| 1 | Fritz Schäffer | 28 May 1945 | 28 September 1945 | CSU | |||
| 2 | Wilhelm Hoegner | 28 September 1945 | 16 December 1946 | SPD | |||
| 3 | Hans Ehard | 21 December 1946 | 14 December 1954 | CSU | |||
| 4 | Wilhelm Hoegner | 14 December 1954 | 8 October 1957 resigned | SPD | |||
| 5 | Hanns Seidel | 16 October 1957 | 22 January 1960 resigned | CSU | |||
| 6 | Hans Ehard | 26 January 1960 | 11 December 1962 | CSU | |||
| 7 | Alfons Goppel | 11 December 1962 | 6 November 1978 | CSU | |||
| 8 | Franz Josef Strauss | 6 November 1978 | 3 October 1988 died in office | CSU | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Max Streibl and President of the Landtag Franz Heubl (both CSU) served together as acting Minister-Presidents from 3 to 19 October 1988. | ||||||
| 9 | Max Streibl | 19 October 1988 | 28 May 1993 resigned | CSU | |||
| 10 | Edmund Stoiber | 28 May 1993 | 9 October 2007 resigned | CSU | |||
| 11 | Günther Beckstein | 9 October 2007 | 27 October 2008 | CSU | |||
| 12 | Horst Seehofer | 27 October 2008 | 13 March 2018 resigned appointed Federal Minister of the Interior | CSU | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Ilse Aigner and President of the Landtag Barbara Stamm (both CSU) served together as acting Minister-Presidents from 13 to 16 March 2018. | ||||||
| 13 | Markus Söder | 16 March 2018 | Incumbent | CSU |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||
| 1 | Ernst Reuter (1889–1953) | 7 December 1948 | 29 September 1953 died in office | SPD | |||
| 2 | Walther Schreiber (1884–1958) | 29 September 1953 | 11 January 1955 | CDU | |||
| 3 | Otto Suhr (1894–1957) | 11 January 1955 | 30 August 1957 died in office | SPD | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Mayor Franz Amrehn (CDU) served as acting Governing Mayor 30 August to 3 October 1957. | ||||||
| 4 | Willy Brandt (1913–1992) | 3 October 1957 | 1 December 1966 resigned appointed Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs and Vice Chancellor | SPD | |||
| 5 | Heinrich Albertz (1915–1993) | 1 December 1966 | 19 October 1967 resigned | SPD | |||
| 6 | Klaus Schütz (1926–2012) | 19 October 1967 | 2 May 1977 resigned | SPD | |||
| 7 | Dietrich Stobbe (1938–2011) | 2 May 1977 | 23 January 1981 resigned | SPD | |||
| 8 | Hans-Jochen Vogel (1926–2020) | 23 January 1981 | 11 June 1981 | SPD | |||
| 9 | Richard von Weizsäcker (1920–2015) | 11 June 1981 | 9 February 1984 resigned elected President of Germany | CDU | |||
| 10 | Eberhard Diepgen (born 1941) 1st term | 9 February 1984 | 16 March 1989 | CDU | |||
| 11 | Walter Momper (born 1945) | 16 March 1989 | 24 January 1991 | SPD | |||
| 12 | Eberhard Diepgen (born 1941) 2nd term | 24 January 1991 | 16 June 2001 voted out of office by a vote of no confidence | CDU | |||
| 13 | Klaus Wowereit (born 1953) | 16 June 2001 | 11 December 2014 resigned | SPD | |||
| 14 | Michael Müller (born 1964) | 11 December 2014 | 21 December 2021 | SPD | |||
| 15 | Franziska Giffey (born 1978) | 21 December 2021 | 27 April 2023 | SPD | |||
| 16 | Kai Wegner (born 1972) | 27 April 2023 | Incumbent | CDU |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Manfred Stolpe (1936–2019) | 1 November 1990 | 26 June 2002 resigned | SPD | |||
| 2 | Matthias Platzeck (born 1953) | 26 June 2002 | 28 August 2013 resigned | SPD | |||
| 3 | Dietmar Woidke (born 1961) | 28 August 2013 | Incumbent | SPD |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Erich Vagts (1884–1967) | 2 May 1945 | 31 July 1945 | Independent | |||
| 2 | Wilhelm Kaisen (1887–1979) | 31 July 1945 | 20 July 1965 | SPD | |||
| 3 | 80px | Willy Dehnkamp (1903–1985) | 20 July 1965 | 28 November 1967 | SPD | ||
| 4 | Hans Koschnick (1929–2016) | 28 November 1967 | 18 September 1985 | SPD | |||
| 5 | 80px | Klaus Wedemeier (born 1944) | 18 September 1985 | 4 July 1995 | SPD | ||
| 6 | 80px | Henning Scherf (born 1938) | 4 July 1995 | 8 November 2005 resigned | SPD | ||
| 7 | Jens Böhrnsen (born 1949) | 8 November 2005 | 17 July 2015 | SPD | |||
| 8 | Carsten Sieling (born 1959) | 17 July 2015 | 15 August 2019 | SPD | |||
| 9 | Andreas Bovenschulte (born 1965) | 15 August 2019 | Incumbent | SPD |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Max Brauer (1887–1973) 1st term | 22 November 1946 | 2 December 1953 replaced by a constructive vote of no confidence | SPD | |||
| 2 | Kurt Sieveking (1897–1986) | 2 December 1953 | 4 December 1957 | CDU | |||
| 3 | Max Brauer (1887–1973) 2nd term | 4 December 1957 | 31 December 1960 resigned | SPD | |||
| 4 | 80px | Paul Nevermann (1902–1979) | 1 January 1961 | 9 June 1965 resigned | SPD | ||
| 5 | 80px | Herbert Weichmann (1896–1983) | 9 June 1965 | 9 June 1971 resigned | SPD | ||
| 6 | 80px | Peter Schulz (1930–2013) | 9 June 1971 | 12 November 1974 | SPD | ||
| 7 | 80px | Hans-Ulrich Klose (1937–2023) | 12 November 1974 | 24 June 1981 resigned | SPD | ||
| 8 | 80px | Klaus von Dohnanyi (born 1928) | 24 June 1981 | 8 June 1988 | SPD | ||
| 9 | 80px | Henning Voscherau (1941–2016) | 8 June 1988 | 12 November 1997 | SPD | ||
| 10 | 80px | Ortwin Runde (born 1944) | 12 November 1997 | 31 October 2001 | SPD | ||
| 11 | 80px | Ole von Beust (born 1955) | 31 October 2001 | 25 August 2010 resigned | CDU | ||
| 12 | 80px | Christoph Ahlhaus (born 1969) | 25 August 2010 | 7 March 2011 | CDU | ||
| 13 | Olaf Scholz (born 1958) | 7 March 2011 | 13 March 2018 resigned appointed Federal Minister of Finance and Vice Chancellor | SPD | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Second Mayor Katharina Fegebank (Alliance 90/The Greens) served as acting First Mayor from 13 March to 28 March 2018. | ||||||
| 14 | 80px | Peter Tschentscher (born 1966) | 28 March 2018 | Incumbent | SPD |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Christian Stock (1884–1967) | 20 December 1946 | 14 December 1950 | SPD | |||
| 2 | Georg-August Zinn (1901–1976) | 14 December 1950 | 3 October 1969 | SPD | |||
| 3 | Albert Osswald (1919–1996) | 3 October 1969 | 16 October 1976 resigned | SPD | |||
| 4 | Holger Börner (1931–2006) | 16 October 1976 | 23 April 1987 | SPD | |||
| 5 | Walter Wallmann (1932–2013) | 23 April 1987 | 5 April 1991 | CDU | |||
| 6 | Hans Eichel (born 1941) | 5 April 1991 | 7 April 1999 | SPD | |||
| 7 | Roland Koch (born 1958) | 7 April 1999 | 31 August 2010 resigned | CDU | |||
| 8 | Volker Bouffier (born 1951) | 31 August 2010 | 31 May 2022 resigned | CDU | |||
| 9 | Boris Rhein (born 1972) | 31 May 2022 | Incumbent | CDU |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Hinrich Wilhelm Kopf (1893–1961) 1st term | 9 December 1946 | 26 May 1955 | SPD | |||
| 2 | 80px | Heinrich Hellwege (1908–1991) | 26 May 1955 | 12 May 1959 | German Party | ||
| 3 | Hinrich Wilhelm Kopf (1893–1961) 2nd term | 12 May 1959 | 21 December 1961 died in office | SPD | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Hermann Ahrens (GB/BHE) served as acting Minister-President from 21 to 29 December 1961. | ||||||
| 4 | Georg Diederichs (1900–1983) | 29 December 1961 | 8 July 1970 | SPD | |||
| 5 | Alfred Kubel (1909–1999) | 8 July 1970 | 6 February 1976 resigned | SPD | |||
| 6 | Ernst Albrecht (1930–2014) | 6 February 1976 | 21 June 1990 | CDU | |||
| 7 | Gerhard Schröder (born 1944) | 21 June 1990 | 28 October 1998 resigned elected Chancellor | SPD | |||
| 8 | Gerhard Glogowski (born 1943) | 28 October 1998 | 15 October 1999 resigned | SPD | |||
| 9 | Sigmar Gabriel (born 1959) | 15 October 1999 | 4 March 2003 | SPD | |||
| 10 | Christian Wulff (born 1959) | 4 March 2003 | 30 June 2010 resigned elected President of Germany | CDU | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Jörg Bode (FDP) served as acting Minister-President from 30 June to 1 July 2010. | ||||||
| 11 | David McAllister (born 1971) | 1 July 2010 | 19 February 2013 | CDU | |||
| 12 | Stephan Weil (born 1958) | 19 February 2013 | Incumbent | SPD |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term | width=28% rowspan=2 | Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Alfred Gomolka (1942–2020) | 27 October 1990 | 19 March 1992 resigned | CDU | |||
| 2 | Berndt Seite (born 1940) | 19 March 1992 | 3 November 1998 | CDU | |||
| 3 | Harald Ringstorff (1939–2020) | 3 November 1998 | 6 October 2008 resigned | SPD | |||
| 4 | Erwin Sellering (born 1949) | 6 October 2008 | 4 July 2017 resigned | SPD | |||
| 5 | Manuela Schwesig (born 1974) | 4 July 2017 | Incumbent | SPD |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Rudolf Amelunxen (1888–1969) | 23 August 1946 | 17 June 1947 | Non-partisan (until 1947) | |||
| Centre Party (from 1947) | |||||||
| 2 | Karl Arnold (1901–1958) | 17 June 1947 | 20 February 1956 replaced by a constructive vote of no confidence | CDU | |||
| 3 | Fritz Steinhoff (1897–1969) | 20 February 1956 | 21 July 1958 | SPD | |||
| 4 | Franz Meyers (1908–2002) | 21 July 1958 | 8 December 1966 replaced by a constructive vote of no confidence | CDU | |||
| 5 | Heinz Kühn (1912–1992) | 8 December 1966 | 20 September 1978 | SPD | |||
| 6 | Johannes Rau (1931–2006) | 20 September 1978 | 27 May 1998 resigned | SPD | |||
| 7 | Wolfgang Clement (1940–2020) | 27 May 1998 | 22 October 2002 resigned appointed Federal Minister for the Economy and Labour | SPD | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Michael Vesper (Alliance 90/The Greens) served as acting Minister-President from 22 October to 6 November 2002 | ||||||
| 8 | Peer Steinbrück (born 1947) | 6 November 2002 | 22 June 2005 | SPD | |||
| 9 | Jürgen Rüttgers (born 1951) | 22 June 2005 | 14 July 2010 | CDU | |||
| 10 | Hannelore Kraft (born 1961) | 14 July 2010 | 27 June 2017 | SPD | |||
| 11 | Armin Laschet (born 1961) | 27 June 2017 | 26 October 2021 resigned elected to the Bundestag | CDU | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Joachim Stamp (FDP) served as acting Minister-President from 26 to 27 October 2021 | ||||||
| 12 | Hendrik Wüst (born 1975) | 27 October 2021 | Incumbent | CDU |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Wilhelm Boden (1890–1961) | 1 December 1946 | 9 July 1947 | CDU | |||
| 2 | Peter Altmeier (1899–1977) | 9 July 1947 | 19 May 1969 | CDU | |||
| 3 | Helmut Kohl (1930–2017) | 19 May 1969 | 2 December 1976 resigned elected to the Bundestag | CDU | |||
| 4 | Bernhard Vogel (born 1932) | 2 December 1976 | 8 December 1988 resigned | CDU | |||
| 5 | Carl-Ludwig Wagner (1930–2012) | 8 December 1988 | 21 May 1991 | CDU | |||
| 6 | Rudolf Scharping (born 1947) | 21 May 1991 | 26 October 1994 resigned elected to the Bundestag | SPD | |||
| 7 | Kurt Beck (born 1949) | 26 October 1994 | 16 January 2013 resigned | SPD | |||
| 8 | Malu Dreyer (born 1961) | 16 January 2013 | 10 July 2024 | SPD | |||
| 9 | Alexander Schweitzer (born 1973) | 10 July 2024 | Incumbent | SPD |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (born and died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Johannes Hoffmann (1890–1967) | 20 December 1947 | 29 October 1955 resigned | CVP | |||
| 2 | Heinrich Welsch (1888–1976) | 29 October 1955 | 10 January 1956 | Independent | |||
| 3 | Hubert Ney (1892–1984) | 10 January 1956 | 4 June 1957 resigned | CDU | |||
| 4 | Egon Reinert (1908–1959) | 4 June 1957 | 23 April 1959 died in office | CDU | |||
| 5 | Franz-Josef Röder (1909–1979) | 23 April 1959 | 26 June 1979 died in office | CDU | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Werner Klumpp (FDP) served as acting Minister-President from 26 June to 5 July 1979. | ||||||
| 6 | Werner Zeyer (1929–2000) | 5 July 1979 | 9 April 1985 | CDU | |||
| 7 | Oskar Lafontaine (born 1943) | 9 April 1985 | 10 November 1998 resigned appointed Federal Minister of Finance | SPD | |||
| 8 | Reinhard Klimmt (born 1942) | 10 November 1998 | 29 September 1999 | SPD | |||
| 9 | Peter Müller (born 1955) | 29 September 1999 | 10 August 2011 resigned appointed to the Federal Constitutional Court | CDU | |||
| 10 | Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (born 1962) | 10 August 2011 | 1 March 2018 resigned | CDU | |||
| 11 | Tobias Hans (born 1978) | 1 March 2018 | 25 April 2022 | CDU | |||
| 12 | Anke Rehlinger (born 1976) | 25 April 2022 | Incumbent | SPD |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Kurt Biedenkopf | 27 October 1990 | 18 April 2002 resigned | CDU | |||
| 2 | Georg Milbradt | 18 April 2002 | 28 May 2008 resigned | CDU | |||
| 3 | Stanislaw Tillich (born 1959) | 28 May 2008 | 13 December 2017 resigned | CDU | |||
| 4 | Michael Kretschmer (born 1975) | 13 December 2017 | Incumbent | CDU |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Gerd Gies (born 1943) | 28 October 1990 | 4 July 1991 resigned | CDU | |||
| 2 | Werner Münch (born 1940) | 4 July 1991 | 2 December 1993 resigned | CDU | |||
| 3 | Christoph Bergner (born 1948) | 2 December 1993 | 21 June 1994 | CDU | |||
| 4 | Reinhard Höppner (1948–2014) | 21 June 1994 | 16 May 2002 | SPD | |||
| 5 | Wolfgang Böhmer (born 1936) | 16 May 2002 | 19 April 2011 | CDU | |||
| 6 | Reiner Haseloff (born 1954) | 19 April 2011 | Incumbent | CDU |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Theodor Steltzer (1885–1967) | 12 September 1946 | 29 April 1947 | CDU | |||
| 2 | Hermann Lüdemann (1880–1959) | 29 April 1947 | 29 August 1949 | SPD | |||
| 3 | Bruno Diekmann (1897–1982) | 29 August 1949 | 5 September 1950 | SPD | |||
| 4 | Walter Bartram (1893–1971) | 5 September 1950 | 25 June 1951 resigned | CDU | |||
| 5 | Friedrich-Wilhelm Lübke (1887–1954) | 25 June 1951 | 11 October 1954 resigned | CDU | |||
| 6 | Kai-Uwe von Hassel (1913–1997) | 11 October 1954 | 14 January 1963 resigned appointed Federal Minister of Defence | CDU | |||
| 7 | Helmut Lemke (1907–1990) | 14 January 1963 | 24 May 1971 | CDU | |||
| 8 | Gerhard Stoltenberg (1928–2001) | 24 May 1971 | 14 October 1982 resigned appointed Federal Minister of Finance | CDU | |||
| 9 | Uwe Barschel (1944–1987) | 14 October 1982 | 2 October 1987 resigned | CDU | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy Minister-President Henning Schwarz (CDU) served as acting Minister-President from 2 October 1987 to 31 May 1988. | ||||||
| 10 | Björn Engholm (born 1939) | 31 May 1988 | 19 May 1993 resigned | SPD | |||
| 11 | Heide Simonis (1943–2023) | 19 May 1993 | 27 April 2005 | SPD | |||
| 12 | Peter Harry Carstensen (born 1947) | 27 April 2005 | 12 June 2012 | CDU | |||
| 13 | Torsten Albig (born 1963) | 12 June 2012 | 28 June 2017 | SPD | |||
| 14 | Daniel Günther (born 1973) | 28 June 2017 | Incumbent | CDU | |||
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name (Born–Died) | width=40% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=140pt | Took office | width=140pt | Left office | width=80pt | Days | ||
| 1 | Josef Duchac (born 1938) | 8 November 1990 | 5 February 1992 resigned | ||||
| 2 | Bernhard Vogel (born 1932) | 5 February 1992 | 5 June 2003 resigned | CDU | |||
| 3 | Dieter Althaus (born 1958) | 5 June 2003 | 30 October 2009 | CDU | |||
| 4 | Christine Lieberknecht (born 1958) | 30 October 2009 | 5 December 2014 | CDU | |||
| 5 | Bodo Ramelow (born 1956) 1st term | 5 December 2014 | 5 February 2020 | The Left | |||
| 6 | Thomas Kemmerich (born 1965) | 5 February 2020 | 4 March 2020 resigned | FDP | |||
| 7 | Bodo Ramelow (born 1956) 2nd term | 4 March 2020 | Incumbent | The Left |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||
| 80px | Leo Wohleb (1888–1955) | 24 July 1947 | 25 April 1952 state was merged into Baden-Württemberg | CDU |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 80px | Reinhold Maier (1889–1971) | 19 September 1945 | 25 April 1952 state was merged into Baden-Württemberg | FDP |
| width=80px rowspan=2 colspan=2 | Portrait | width=30% rowspan=2 | Name | width=35% colspan=3 | Term of Office | width=28% rowspan=2 | Political Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took Office | Left Office | Days | |||||
| 1 | Carlo Schmid | 16 October 1945 | 22 July 1947 | SPD | |||
| 2 | Lorenz Bock | 22 July 1947 | 3 August 1948 died in office | CDU | |||
| bgcolor=#EEEEEE colspan=10 | Deputy State President Carlo Schmid (SPD) served as acting State President from 3 to 13 August 1948. | ||||||
| 3 | Gebhard Müller | 13 August 1948 | 25 April 1952 state was merged into Baden-Württemberg | CDU |
The office of a minister-president is both highly prestigious in its own right and acts as a potential "career springboard" for German politicians.
Three out of twelve Presidents of Germany have been head of a state before becoming President:
One out of 13 Presidents of the Bundestag has been head of a state before becoming President:
Five out of nine Chancellors of Germany have been head of a state before becoming Chancellor:
One out of ten Presidents of the Federal Constitutional Court has been head of a state before becoming President:
Many more minister-presidents went on to become members of the federal government, EU institutions or associate judges of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany for example.
The three longest serving office-holders were:
The three shortest serving office-holders were:
There have been eight female heads of a German state:
One person has managed to become Minister-President of two different states, which did not merge into one another:
Two persons have been minister-presidents of two states before and after they had merged into one another:
So far, there has been already one Minister-President from a recognized national minority: Stanislaw Tillich, who served as Minister-President of Saxony between 2008 and 2017, is of Sorbian origin and speaks Sorbian and German as his mother tongue.
David McAllister, who served as the Minister-President of Lower Saxony between 2010 and 2013, has been the first office-holder with dual nationality (Germany and United Kingdom).
The vast majority former minister-presidents have been members of Germany's two biggest political parties, the center-right CDU (or, in Bavaria, its sister party CSU) and the center-left SPD. However, several other parties (including all parties currently represented in the Bundestag, apart from the AfD and BSW) have at least once provided a minister-president.
Alliance 90/The Greens
Christian People's Party of Saarland
Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP):
Two Minister-presidents where independent: