Andreas Geisel (born 1 March 1966) is a German politician of the
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
For ...
(SPD) who is serving as Senator for Urban Development, Construction and Housing in the
Berlin state government since December 2021. Prior, he was Senator for Interior and Sport from 2016 to 2021, and Senator for Urban Development and Environment from 2014 to 2016.
Early life and education
Geisel was born 1 March 1966 in
East Berlin.
Geisel attended a polytechnic secondary school in East Berlin between 1972 and 1982. Between 1985 and 1986 Geisel worked a telecommunications technician at the East German Postal Service. From 1986 until 1990 he attended the College of Transportation Friedrich List in
Dresden and studied Economics in regard to the media industry. He then worked for
Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom AG (; short form often just Telekom, DTAG or DT; stylised as ·T·) is a German telecommunications company that is headquartered in Bonn and is the largest telecommunications provider in Europe by revenue. Deutsche Telekom was ...
in Berlin from 1990 till 1992. He then worked for
PricewaterhouseCoopers as a consultant from 1994 until 1995.
Political career
Early beginnings
In the GDR Geisel was a member of the
SED.
After
German reunification in 1990 Geisel became a member of the SPD. In 1995 he was elected borough councillor in the Berlin borough of Lichtenberg, an office he held until 2000 and then after the redistricting again but this time for the borough of Lichtenberg-Hohenschönhausen.
In the
2009 national elections, Geisel ran for a seat in the Federal Parliament in the Lichtenberg constituency, he came in second with 18.4% of the vote.
On 10 November 2011, Geisel was elected Mayor of Lichtenberg with the support of the CDU and Alliance 90/The Greens. He was mayor until he was appointed to the Berlin Senate in 2014.
Senator of Berlin
In 2014, Geisel was appointed Senator for Urban Development and the Environment by new Governing Mayor of Berlin
Michael Müller. After the
2016 Berlin state election
The 2016 Berlin state election was held on 18 September 2016 to elect the members to the 18th Abgeordnetenhaus of Berlin. The incumbent grand coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and Christian Democratic Union (CDU) was defeated, with b ...
, Geisel remained in the Senate, taking the portfolio of Interior and Sport. As one of the state's representatives at the
Bundesrat, he has been a member of the Committee on Internal Affairs and of the Defence Committee. He is also part of the
Conference of Interior Ministers (IMK).
During the
COVID-19 pandemic, as stocks of protective gear like face mask become strained, nations have been competing with increased urgency over the short supplies. On April 3, Geisel accused
United States agents of appropriating a shipment of 200,000 face masks meant for German police from the airport in
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populatio ...
. However, these claims haven't been corroborated, and the whereabouts of the shipment remains unclear.
In 2021, Geisel outlawed and dissolved Jama’atu Berlin, a
Salafist
The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a reform branch movement within Sunni Islam that originated during the nineteenth century. The name refers to advocacy of a return to the traditions of the "pious predecessors" (), the first three generati ...
association also known as Tauhid Berlin, saying the group was advocating terrorist attacks.
After the
2021 Berlin state election
The 2021 Berlin state election was held on 26 September 2021 to elect the 19th Abgeordnetenhaus of Berlin. The incumbent government was a coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), The Left, and The Greens led by Governing Mayor Michael M� ...
, Geisel was appointed Senator for Urban Development, Construction and Housing in the
Senate of new Governing Mayor
Franziska Giffey.
Other activities (selection)
*
Berlin School of Economics and Law
The Berlin School of Economics and Law ( German: ''Hochschule für Wirtschaft und Recht''), abbreviated as BSEL, is a public institution of higher education and research founded on 1 April 2009 through the merger of the Berlin School of Econo ...
(HWR), Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2017)
*
Olympiastadion Berlin
The Olympiastadion (; en, Olympic Stadium) is a sports stadium at Olympiapark Berlin in Berlin, Germany. It was originally built by Werner March for the 1936 Summer Olympics. During the Olympics, the record attendance was thought to be over 10 ...
, Member of the Supervisory Board (since 2016)
* German Forum for Crime Prevention (DFK), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2016)
* Business Forum of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Member of the Political Advisory Board
Political Advisory Board
Business Forum of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.
* Friends of Mies van der Rohe Haus, Member
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Geisel, Andreas
1966 births
Living people
Senators of Berlin
Members of the Abgeordnetenhaus of Berlin
Social Democratic Party of Germany politicians
People from East Berlin
20th-century German politicians
21st-century German politicians