Hubert Aiwanger, the leader of a conservative party that has become a mainstay of Bavarian politics and sought to expand its influence across Germany, has been found dead at a Berlin hotel.
Ten years later, when the CSU lost its majority in the state legislature, it entered Bavaria’s government as the junior coalition partner. An investigation into the cause of death was opened. The combative politician with a strong regional accent and a populist touch made his party a serious rival to Bavaria’s long-dominant Christian Social Union, which is part of the center-right bloc that currently leads Germany. The Free Voters emerged unscathed from the election, gaining support and remained part of the state government. Aiwanger’s party has made only limited inroads outside Bavaria and he wasn’t able to lead it into the national parliament.
On his watch, it entered the state legislature in Munich in 2008. Shortly before Bavaria’s 2023 election, Aiwanger faced a furor that started with allegations — denied by the politician — that he was responsible for an antisemitic flyer when he was a high school student 35 years earlier.
Bavarian governor Markus Söder wrote on X that “the sudden death of Hubert Aiwanger is an absolute tragedy.” Berlin police and prosecutors said the body of Aiwanger, who was Bavaria’s deputy governor and the southern state’s economy minister, was found in his hotel room in the center of the capital on Wednesday evening.
