A prominent German politician was found dead in a Berlin hotel on Wednesday, police said, confirming that an investigation had been launched. Hubert Aiwanger was 55 years old.
The cause of death for the Bavarian state deputy leader was not immediately clear. Police stated he was found dead inside a room at a hotel in the Berlin-Mitte district.
Police and prosecutors opened a formal probe to determine the specific cause and circumstances. Aiwanger served as head of the populist Free Voters party and also held office as the Bavarian economy minister.
He had travelled to Berlin to attend the opening of an office for his political party. According to the Bild daily, he missed the event because he was feeling unwell.
His body was later discovered at the hotel by police officers. Bavarian state premier Markus Soeder described the death of his deputy as an absolute tragedy.
Soeder said they were all deeply shocked by the news. He added that their thoughts were first and foremost with Aiwanger’s family and his children.
Aiwanger’s party served as junior partners in the regional Bavarian government led by Soeder’s Christian Social Union. He had led the Bavarian branch of the Free Voters since 2006.
Under his leadership, the party entered the state government for the first time in 2018. However, the group never won enough seats to qualify for Germany’s federal parliament.
Aiwanger faced national controversy in 2023 after reports that he wrote an antisemitic pamphlet as a 17-year-old schoolboy. The document described Auschwitz as an entertainment quarter.
He denied writing the pamphlet, though he admitted to having one or a few copies of it in his school bag. He apologized over the affair but refused to step down from his post. Aiwanger lived with his partner and had two children, according to German media reports.
