Bernhard Vogel is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). He was the 4th Minister President of Rhineland-Palatinate from 1976 to 1988 and the 2nd Minister President of Thuringia from 1992 to 2003. He is the only person to have been head of two different German federal states and is the longest-governing Minister President of Germany. He served as the 28th and 40th President of the Bundesrat in 1976/77 and 1987/88.
The Rhineland-Palatinate Landtag is the state diet of the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
In German politics, a traffic light coalition is a coalition government of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and Alliance 90/The Greens. It is named after the parties' traditional colours, respectively red, yellow, and green, matching the colour sequence of a traffic light (Ampel). The term is also used for similar coalitions between social democrats, liberals and greens in other countries. Prior to the emergence of Green politics as a distinct ideological current, the Weimar Coalition already formed an SPD-led coalition of broadly center-left and centrist parties, including conservative liberalism, liberal conservatism, left liberalism and social democracy among the constituent ideologies.
Sabine Bätzing-Lichtenthäler is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who has been leading her party’s group in the State Parliament of Rhineland-Palatinate since 2021. She is the first woman in this position.
The politics of Rhineland-Palatinate takes place within a framework of a federal parliamentary representative democratic republic, where the Federal Government of Germany exercises sovereign rights with certain powers reserved to the states of Germany including Rhineland-Palatinate. The state has a multi-party system where the two main parties are the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the center-left Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD).
The 2011 Rhineland-Palatinate state election was held on 27 March 2011 to elect the members of the Landtag of Rhineland-Palatinate. The incumbent Social Democratic Party (SPD) government led by Minister-President Kurt Beck lost its majority. The SPD subsequently formed a coalition with The Greens, and Beck continued in office.
Michael Ebling is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). On 25 March 2012 he was elected mayor of Mainz as successor of Jens Beutel (SPD). Ebling took over the office of mayor on 18 April 2012.
Marie-Luise "Malu" Dreyer is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who has served as the 8th and current Minister President of Rhineland-Palatinate since 13 January 2013. She is the first woman to hold this office. She served a one-year-term as the President of the Bundesrat from 1 November 2016 – 2017, which made her the deputy to the President of Germany while in office. She was the second female President of the Bundesrat and the sixth woman holding one of the five highest federal offices in Germany.
The 2016 Rhineland-Palatinate state election was held on 13 March 2016 to elect the members of the Landtag of Rhineland-Palatinate. It was held on the same day as the Baden-Württemberg state election and Saxony-Anhalt state election. The incumbent coalition government of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and The Greens led by Minister-President Malu Dreyer was defeated. The SPD remained the largest party, and formed a "traffic light coalition" with the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and The Greens. Dreyer was subsequently re-elected as Minister-President.
The Minister president (Ministerpräsident) is the head of state and government in thirteen of Germany's sixteen states.
Jutta Paulus is a German pharmacist and politician who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament for Alliance 90/The Greens since 2019.
The 2021 Baden-Württemberg state election was held on 14 March 2021 to elect the 17th Landtag of Baden-Württemberg. The outgoing government was a coalition of Alliance 90/The Greens and the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) led by Minister-President Winfried Kretschmann.
The 2021 Rhineland-Palatinate state election was held on 14 March 2021 to elect the 18th Landtag of Rhineland-Palatinate. The outgoing government was a "traffic light coalition" of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), Free Democratic Party (FDP), and The Greens led by Minister-President Malu Dreyer.
Volker Wissing is a German lawyer and politician of the liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP) who has been serving as the party's General Secretary since 2020, and as Minister for Transport in the federal government under Chancellor Olaf Scholz since 2021. He previously was the Deputy Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate in the state government under Minister-President Malu Dreyer from 2016 to 2021 and a member of the German Parliament from 2004 to 2013.
Anne Spiegel is a German politician of Alliance 90/The Greens, serving as Federal Minister for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth in the cabinet of Chancellor Olaf Scholz since 8 December 2021.
Katharina Binz is a German politician of Alliance 90/The Greens who has been serving as Minister for Family, Women, Culture and Integration in the third Cabinet of Minister-President Malu Dreyer since 2021. She has also been a part of the German Bundesrat for Rhineland-Palatinate since 2021. In December 2021 she succeeded Anne Spiegel as Deputy Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate.
The Third Dreyer cabinet is the current state government of Rhineland-Palatinate, sworn in on 18 May 2021 after Malu Dreyer was elected as Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate by the members of the Landtag of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is the 25th Cabinet of Rhineland-Palatinate.
Doris Maria Ahnen is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who has been serving as Minister for Finance in the state government of Rhineland-Palatinate since 2014. Prior to that she served as the Minister for Education, Research and Culture since 2001. She has been a part of the State Parliament of Rhineland-Palatinate since the 2006 elections. She is also a member of the German Bundesrat for Rhineland-Palatinate.
The First Dreyer cabinet was the state government of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate from 16 January 2013 until 18 May 2016. The Cabinet was headed by Minister President Malu Dreyer and was formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance '90/The Greens, after the resignation of minister president Kurt Beck. On 16 January 2013 Dreyer was elected and sworn in as Minister President by the Landtag of Rhineland-Palatinate. It was succeeded by Dreyers's second and third cabinets.
