Günther Beckstein (; born 23 November 1943) is a German CSU

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

from

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

and was the 17th minister-president of Bavaria from 9 October 2007 to 27 October 2008. He is well known for his outspoken views on law and order.

Biography

Beckstein was born in

Hersbruck Hersbruck () is a small town in Middle Franconia, Bavaria, Germany, belonging to the district Nürnberger Land. It is best known for the late-gothic artwork of the Hersbruck altar, the "Hirtenmuseum" and the landscape of Hersbruck Switzerland. ...

. After graduating from High School at the '' Willstätter- Gymnasium'' in

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

in 1962, he studied

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

at the

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

and

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

. He holds a Ph.D. from Erlangen-Nürnberg University. In 1975, he wrote his dissertation ' (''The Delinquent of Conscience in Criminal Law and Trial Law'') which led to his Ph.D. Between 1971 and 1978, he worked as a lawyer. Beckstein has been married to Marga Beckstein, a teacher, since 1973. They have three children: Ruth, Frank and Martin. Beckstein and his wife are residents of Nürnberg- Langwasser. He is a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

and an active church member, who was a member of the synod of the

Evangelical Church in Germany The Evangelical Church in Germany (, EKD), also known as the Protestant Church in Germany, is a federation of twenty Lutheranism, Lutheran, Continental Reformed Protestantism, Reformed, and united and uniting churches, United Protestantism in Ger ...

from 1993 to 2015.

Political career

Beckstein started his political career as the district chairman of the Junge Union Nürnberg-

Fürth Fürth (; East Franconian German, East Franconian: ; ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in northern Bavaria, Germany, in the administrative division (''Regierungsbezirk'') of Middle Franconia. It is the Franconia#Towns and cities, s ...

(1973–1978) and then became vice chairman of the CSU district association Nürnberg-Fürth-

Schwabach Schwabach () is a German city of about 40,000 inhabitants near Nuremberg in the centre of the region of Franconia in the north of Bavaria. Together with the neighboring cities of Nuremberg, Fürth and Erlangen, Schwabach forms one of the three me ...

. In 1991, he acceded its chairmanship. Beckstein became a member of the Bavarian State Parliament, the ''

Landtag A ''Landtag'' (State Diet) is generally the legislative assembly or parliament of a federated state or other subnational self-governing entity in German-speaking nations. It is usually a unicameral assembly exercising legislative competence ...

'', for the CSU in 1974. In 1987 he ran for Oberbürgermeister (Lord Mayor) of his home town Nürnberg, but lost to his opponent Peter Schönlein (SPD). In 1988, Beckstein became State Secretary at the Bavarian

Ministry of Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, th ...

('). In 1993, he became the Interior Minister of Bavaria, succeeding Edmund Stoiber. In 2001, he was elected to the post of Deputy Minister-President of Bavaria. Beckstein won seat in the ''

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the lower house of the Germany, German Federalism in Germany, federal parliament. It is the only constitutional body of the federation directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag wa ...

'' in the 2005 German federal elections but did not take up this position, preferring to stay in state politics. After Minister-President Edmund Stoiber had announced on 18 January 2007 to resign from his post in the autumn of 2007, the CSU

fraction came to the arrangement for Beckstein to succeed Stoiber, after a power struggle with Erwin Huber, selecting him with a vast majority. On 9 October, the Bavarian ''Landtag'' elected him as the new Minister-President by a majority of 122 of the 178 votes cast. His rise to the post of Bavarian prime minister was something of a novelty in the state as he is from

Franconia Franconia ( ; ; ) is a geographical region of Germany, characterised by its culture and East Franconian dialect (). Franconia is made up of the three (governmental districts) of Lower Franconia, Lower, Middle Franconia, Middle and Upper Franco ...

—the northern half of Bavaria—and a Protestant. Traditionally, though not exclusively, Bavarian prime ministers have been from Altbayern—the south—and Catholics. On 1 October 2008, following the Bavarian state elections of 28 September, where his party lost its absolute majority of the seats for the first time in 46 years, Beckstein resigned from his post but remained in office until a new Minister-President was elected on 27 October. Beckstein was a CSU delegate to the Federal Convention for the purpose of electing the

President of Germany The president of Germany, officially titled the Federal President of the Federal Republic of Germany (),The official title within Germany is ', with ' being added in international correspondence; the official English title is President of the F ...

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

Views

* Beckstein is an outspoken critic of the

Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a business, or a new religiou ...

. * He is a staunch supporter of

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and has warned in the past of the danger of

right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...

extremism Extremism is "the quality or state of being extreme" or "the advocacy of extreme measures or views". The term is primarily used in a political or religious sense to refer to an ideology that is considered (by the speaker or by some implied sha ...

and

antisemitism Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

. He has received the ''Jerusalem Prize'' of the ' ('' Zionistin Organisation of Germany'') in July 2006 for his efforts. * He has warned repeatedly of the dangers arising from Islamist extremists in Germany and has asked for greater powers for government security departments to deal with those. He was criticized for this by members of the SPD and German

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. * As the head of the Bavarian government, Beckstein had the final say on whether Hitler's ''

Mein Kampf (; ) is a 1925 Autobiography, autobiographical manifesto by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler. The book outlines many of Political views of Adolf Hitler, Hitler's political beliefs, his political ideology and future plans for Nazi Germany, Ge ...

'' could be published in Germany, since Bavaria holds the copyrights. Beckstein disallowed any form of publication of the book in Germany, fearing it would fuel right-wing extremism. * Beckstein caused controversy in the run-up to

Oktoberfest Oktoberfest (; ) is the world's largest , featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival, and is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, from mid- or late-September to the first Sunday in October. The annual event attracts more than seven milli ...

by declaring that people who drink two Maß of

beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...

over several hours are fit to drive.

Other activities

Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG (, ) is a Germany, German multinational Investment banking, investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange. ...

, Member of the Regional Advisory Board for Bavaria (since 2011) *

(FAU), Member of the Board of TrusteesBoard of Trustees

(FAU)

References

External links

Günther Beckstein Sworn in as new Bavarian Premier
''

Deutsche Welle (; "German Wave"), commonly shortened to DW (), is a German state-funded television network, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the Federal Government of Germany. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite tele ...

'' article on Günther Beckstein
Website with quotes of Günther Beckstein
(in German)

(in German)

(in German) {{DEFAULTSORT:Beckstein, Gunther 1943 births Living people People from Hersbruck Ministers of the Bavaria State Government Members of the Bundestag for Bavaria Minister-presidents of Bavaria Members of the Landtag of Bavaria German Lutherans Jurists from Bavaria 21st-century German politicians Members of the Bundestag for the Christian Social Union in Bavaria