Leader of the Free Democratic Party (Germany)

Chairman of the Free Democratic Party
Vorsitzender der Freien Demokratischen Partei
Incumbent Christian Dürr since 16 May 2025
Type	Chairman of a party
Member of	Federal Executive Presidium
Formation	12 December 1948
First holder	Theodor Heuss
Deputy	Deputy Chairperson: Wolfgang Kubicki Nicola Beer Johannes Vogel

The Chairman of the Free Democratic Party (German : Vorsitzender der Freien Demokratischen Partei) is the most senior and leading political figure within the Free Democratic Party (FDP), a centre-right and liberal political party in Germany with parliamentary representation. The Free Democratic Party (FDP) is, historically, also one of the most significant political parties in Germany. From 6 December 2013 to 23 February 2025, the office was held by Christian Lindner, who succeeded Philipp Rösler. ^[1]

The Leader of the Free Democratic Party is supported by a General Secretary who, from December 2024 to February 2025, was Marco Buschmann.

List

Chairmen of the Free Democratic Party

Portrait		Name (Born–Died)	Term of office			Faction	State	Chancellor
			Took office	Left office	Days
1		Theodor Heuss (1884–1963)	12 December 1948	12 September 1949	274 days	Social liberal faction [2]	Baden-Württemberg	None Konrad Adenauer
2		Franz Blücher (1896–1959)	12 September 1949	6 March 1954	4 years, 175 days	None	North Rhine-Westphalia	Konrad Adenauer
3		Thomas Dehler (1897–1967)	6 March 1954	26 January 1957	2 years, 326 days	Determined liberal faction	Bavaria	Konrad Adenauer
4		Reinhold Maier (1889–1971)	26 January 1957	28 January 1960	3 years, 2 days	Determined liberal faction	Baden-Württemberg	Konrad Adenauer
5		Erich Mende (1916–1998)	28 January 1960	30 January 1968	8 years, 2 days	National liberal faction [3]	North Rhine-Westphalia	Konrad Adenauer Ludwig Erhard Kurt Georg Kiesinger
6		Walter Scheel (1919–2016)	30 January 1968	1 October 1974	6 years, 244 days	Social liberal and eco-liberal faction [4]	North Rhine-Westphalia	Kurt Georg Kiesinger Willy Brandt Himself(acting) Helmut Schmidt
7		Hans-Dietrich Genscher (1927–2016)	1 October 1974	23 February 1985	10 years, 145 days	Compromise classical liberal faction	North Rhine-Westphalia	Helmut Schmidt Helmut Kohl
8		Martin Bangemann (1934–2022)	23 February 1985	8 October 1988	3 years, 228 days	None (Social liberal faction)	Baden-Württemberg	Helmut Kohl
9		Otto Graf Lambsdorff (1926–2009)	8 October 1988	11 June 1993	4 years, 246 days	Market liberal and Ordoliberal faction [5]	North Rhine-Westphalia	Helmut Kohl
10		Klaus Kinkel (1936–2019)	11 June 1993	10 June 1995	1 year, 364 days	None (Affiliated with the Compromise classical liberal faction)	Baden-Württemberg	Helmut Kohl
11		Wolfgang Gerhardt (1943–2024)	10 June 1995	4 May 2001	5 years, 328 days	Economic liberal faction [6]	Hesse	Helmut Kohl Gerhard Schröder
12		Guido Westerwelle (1961–2016)	4 May 2001	13 May 2011	10 years, 9 days	Neoliberal and Anti-Ordoliberal faction [7] [8]	North Rhine-Westphalia	Gerhard Schröder Angela Merkel
13		Philipp Rösler (born 1973)	13 May 2011	7 December 2013	2 years, 208 days	None	Lower Saxony	Angela Merkel
14		Christian Lindner (born 1979)	7 December 2013	16 May 2025	11 years, 160 days	None	North Rhine-Westphalia	Angela Merkel Olaf Scholz Friedrich Merz
15		Christian Dürr (born 1977)	16 May 2025	Incumbent	52 days	None	Lower Saxony	Friedrich Merz

References

1. "Parteitag: Christian Lindner führt die FDP in die Apo". WELT. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
2. Hertfelder, Thomas (2013). Von Naumann zu Heuss: über eine Tradition des sozialen Liberalismus in Deutschland. Kleine Reihe / Stiftung Bundespräsident-Theodor-Heuss-Haus. Stuttgart: Stiftung Bundespräsident-Theodor-Heuss-Haus. ISBN 978-3-942302-03-6.
3. "Rücken zur Wand". Der Spiegel. 21 June 1970.
4. Peter H. Merkl (1989). The Federal Republic of Germany at Forty: Union Without Unity. NYU Press. p. 335. ISBN 978-0-81-475446-7.
5. Andry, Aurélie Dianara (2022). Social Europe, the Road Not Taken: The Left and European Integration in the Long 1970s. Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-286709-4.
6. "Wolfgang Gerhardt zum 70. Geburtstag". 20 December 2013.
7. "The FDP, the Party of Neoliberalism (May 11, 2006)".
8. "Die FDP zwischen Neo- und Ordoliberalismus".