Hubert Aiwanger, Deputy Premier of Bavaria, Minister of Economic Affairs and leader of the Free Voters party, has died. He was 55. His body was found on Wednesday, 4 November, in the early evening hours in a hotel room in the Mitte district of Berlin.
What police established
The Berlin police and prosecutors said in a joint statement that Aiwanger was found dead „early in the evening” in his hotel room. The Berlin prosecutor’s office and the 6th Homicide Commission of the Criminal Investigation Office (Kriminalamt) have opened a death investigation proceeding (German: Todesermittlungsverfahren).
According to police, the aim of the proceedings is to establish the specific cause and circumstances of death and to rule out the possible involvement of third parties. The investigation is ongoing. The cause of death has not been given.
Reactions from politicians
Bavarian Premier Markus Söder wrote on X that Aiwanger’s sudden death is an „absolute tragedy” and that everyone is „deeply shaken”. He added that his thoughts are above all with his family and children.
Ilse Aigner (CSU), President of the Bavarian Landtag, spoke of „great horror and disbelief” and said that the politician had been „torn from life”.
Who was Hubert Aiwanger
He was born on 26 January 1971. He joined the Free Voters (Freie Wähler) just before the 2002 municipal elections. From 2010 he headed the party at the federal level. From 2018 he was Deputy Premier of Bavaria and Bavarian Minister of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy, in coalition with the CSU.
In 2023 he became the central figure in a scandal surrounding an antisemitic leaflet from his school days. He admitted that he had copies of it in his school bag, but denied being its author. The Free Voters gained in opinion polls during this period.
Final hours
On Wednesday, the Free Voters’ Berlin state office was due to open in Berlin. According to German media, Aiwanger did not attend the ceremony because he was unwell and stayed in the hotel. This is a media report that the police did not confirm in their statement. On Tuesday evening the politician commented on X on the Halloween riots in Hamburg and called for a tougher response from the police and the justice system.
