Jens Spahn
Jens Spahn MdB | |
|---|---|
Spahn in 2025 | |
| Leader of the CDU/CSU in the Bundestag | |
| Assumed office 5 May 2025 | |
| First Deputy | Alexander Hoffmann |
| Chief Whip | Steffen Bilger |
| Preceded by | Friedrich Merz |
| Minister of Health | |
| In office 14 March 2018 – 8 December 2021 | |
| Chancellor | Angela Merkel |
| Preceded by | Hermann Gröhe |
| Succeeded by | Karl Lauterbach |
| Deputy Leader of the Christian Democratic Union | |
| In office 16 January 2021 – 20 January 2022 Serving with Silvia Breher, Volker Bouffier, Julia Klöckner and Thomas Strobl | |
| Leader | Armin Laschet |
| Preceded by | Armin Laschet |
| Succeeded by | Carsten Linnemann |
| Parliamentary State Secretary in the Ministry of Finance | |
| In office 3 July 2015 – 14 March 2018 | |
| Chancellor | Angela Merkel |
| Minister | Wolfgang Schäuble Peter Altmaier (acting) |
| Preceded by | Steffen Kampeter |
| Succeeded by | Christine Lambrecht |
| Member of the Bundestag for Steinfurt I – Borken I | |
| Assumed office 17 October 2002 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jens Georg Spahn 16 May 1980 Ahaus, North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany (now Germany) |
| Political party | CDU (since 1997) |
| Spouse | Daniel Funke (m. 2017) |
| Alma mater | University of Hagen (BA, MA) |
| Occupation |
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| Website | Official website |
Jens Georg Spahn (born 16 May 1980) is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who has been a member of the lower house of the federal parliament, the Bundestag (German: Mitglied des Deutschen Bundestages, MdB), for Steinfurt I – Borken I since 2002. Since 2025, he has been leading the joint CDU/CSU (Union) parliamentary group in the 21st Bundestag, making him the majority leader.[2] He served as Federal Minister of Health in the fourth cabinet of Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2018 to 2021, including during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany.
At the time of his first election in 2002, Spahn – at age 22 – was the youngest member of the CDU in the German parliament. He has since been one of the main sponsors of pension reform in Germany. He was a member of the Committee of Health of the 17th Bundestag and the CDU/CSU parliamentary group's spokesperson on health.
When Chancellor Angela Merkel stated her intention not to seek re-election for the CDU party leadership in 2018, Spahn announced his intention to stand for election as her successor in December 2018.[3] He was eliminated in the first round of voting; the position instead went to Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer.[4] Following Kramp-Karrenbauer's decision to resign in February 2020, he announced that he would not run for the party's leadership but instead endorse candidate Armin Laschet.[5] His alliance with Laschet proved successful, as his ally became CDU party leader on 16 January 2021[6][7] and candidate for chancellor of the CDU/CSU party alliance on 19 April 2021.[8]
- ^ Knight, Ben (26 February 2018). "Angela Merkel's new coalition 'won't address lobbying in Germany'". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
- ^ Tina Handel (5 May 2025), Neuer Unionsfraktionschef: Kann Spahn auch loyal? Tagesschau.
- ^ "Merz will CDU-Chef werden: 'Wir brauchen in der Union Aufbruch und Erneuerung'". Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). ISSN 0174-4909. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
- ^ Connolly, Kate (7 December 2018). "Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer elected Merkel's successor as CDU leader". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
- ^ SPIEGEL, DER (25 February 2020). "'Es kann nur einen Parteichef geben' – DER SPIEGEL – Politik". Der Spiegel (in German). Retrieved 29 February 2020.
- ^ SPIEGEL, DER (16 January 2021). "Armin Laschet zum neuen CDU-Vorsitzenden gewählt". Der Spiegel (in German). Retrieved 20 June 2021.
- ^ Welle (www.dw.com), Deutsche, Merkels Getreuer – Armin Laschet ist neuer CDU-Chef | DW | 16 January 2021 (in German), retrieved 20 June 2021
- ^ Lohse, Eckart; Berlin. "Machtkampf mit Markus Söder: CDU-Vorstand deutlich für Laschet als Kanzlerkandidat". FAZ.NET (in German). ISSN 0174-4909. Retrieved 20 June 2021.