Daniela Ludwig (née Raab, born 7 July 1975) is a German politician of the Christian Social Union (CSU) who has been serving as a member of the since 2002.

Early life and education

Ludwig studied law at

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's sixth-oldest university in continuous operatio ...

until 2002.

Political career

Ludwig joined the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU) at the age of 18. She was first elected to the in 2002. Since 2005 she has represented the

electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...

Rosenheim Rosenheim is a city in Bavaria, Germany. It is an independent city located in the centre of the district of Rosenheim (Upper Bavaria), and is also the seat of its administration. It is located on the west bank of the Inn at the confluence of the ...

. She also sits on the district council of the

. Ludwig was deputy general secretary of the CSU in 2018–19. She was the spokesperson on transport policy for the CDU/CSU group. In the negotiations to form a ''

Grand Coalition A grand coalition is an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government. The term is most commonly used in countries where there are t ...

'' of

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU together with the Bavarian CSU) and the SPD following the 2013 federal elections, Ludwig was part of the CDU/CSU delegation in the working group on families, women and equality, led by

Annette Widmann-Mauz Annette Widmann-Mauz ( Widmann; born 13 June 1966) is a German politician of the Christian Democrats who has been serving as a member of the German (the German federal parliament) since 1998, representing the electoral district of Tübingen. In ...

and Manuela Schwesig. In similar negotiations following the 2017 federal elections, she was part of the working group on transport and infrastructure, led by

Michael Kretschmer Michael Kretschmer (born 7 May 1975) is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who has been serving as Minister President of Saxony since 13 December 2017. Since 2022, he has been one of four deputy chairs of the CDU, under ...

Alexander Dobrindt Alexander Dobrindt (born 7 June 1970) is a German politician of the Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU). Between 2013 and 2017, he served as Federal Minister of Transport and Digital Infrastructure in the government of Chancellor Angela Mer ...

and

Sören Bartol Sören Bartol (born 4 September 1974) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who has been serving as Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Ministry for Housing, Urban Development and Building in the coalition governmen ...

. From 2019 until 2021, Ludwig served as Commissioner on Narcotic Drugs at the Federal Ministry of Health in the government of Chancellor Merkel, succeeding

Marlene Mortler Marlene Mortler (née Hengelein; born 16 October 1955) is a German politician of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU) who has been a Member of the European Parliament since 2019. She was a member of the German Parliament from 2002 until 20 ...

. Her appointment was criticised by opposition politicians and activists due to her lack of experience on drug policy. Later that year Ludwig sparked a debate on legalising cannabis, and stated that she wanted to find a compromise on liberalising the prohibition for personal recreational use. She also called for a comprehensive ban on advertisements for smoking, including

e-cigarette An electronic cigarette is an electronic device that simulates tobacco smoking. It consists of an atomizer, a power source such as a battery, and a container such as a cartridge or tank. Instead of smoke, the user inhales vapor. As such ...

s. Since 2022, Ludwig has been serving as chairwoman of the chairman of the Committee on the Scrutiny of Elections, Immunity and the Rules of Procedure. She is also a member of the Committee on Education, Research and Technology Assessment.

Political positions

In June 2017, Ludwig voted against Germany's introduction of

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

.Diese Unionsabgeordneten stimmten für die Ehe für alle
''

Die Welt ''Die Welt'' ("The World") is a German national daily newspaper, published as a broadsheet by Axel Springer SE. ''Die Welt'' is the flagship newspaper of the Axel Springer publishing group. Its leading competitors are the ''Frankfurter Allg ...

'', June 30, 2017.

Recognition

In 2019 Ludwig received the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

(Cross of Merit) for charitable engagement.

Personal life

Ludwig married Florian Ludwig, teacher and city councillor, in 2010. They became parents of twins in 2011.

References

External links