Wolfgang Gerhardt (born 31 December 1943) is a German politician and was the leader of the

Free Democratic Party of Germany The Free Democratic Party (german: link=no, Freie Demokratische Partei; FDP, ) is a liberal political party in Germany. The FDP was founded in 1948 by members of former liberal political parties which existed in Germany before World War II, n ...

(FDP) from 1995 until he was succeeded by

Guido Westerwelle Guido Westerwelle (; 27 December 1961 – 18 March 2016) was a German politician who served as Foreign Minister in the second cabinet of Chancellor Angela Merkel and Vice-Chancellor of Germany from 2009 to 2011, being the first openly gay person ...

in 2001.

Political career

Gerhardt was born in

Ulrichstein Ulrichstein () is a small town in the Vogelsbergkreis in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Ulrichstein lies in the Vogelsberg Mountains 614 m above sea level and is thereby Hesse's highest town. It is a recognized climatic spa and lies right ne ...

. He was a member of the Member of the

Landtag of Hesse The Landtag of Hesse (german: link=no, Hessischer Landtag) is the unicameral parliament of the State of Hesse in the Federal Republic of Germany. It convenes in the Stadtschloss in Wiesbaden. As a legislature it is responsible for passing l ...

from 1978 until 1994. Between 1987 and 1991, he served as State Minister for Science and Culture and Deputy Minister-President in the state government of Minister-President

Walter Wallmann Walter Wallmann (24 September 1932 – 21 September 2013) was a German lawyer politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). He served as the Mayor of Frankfurt between 1977 and 1986, and as Minister-president of Hesse from 1987 to 1991. ...

of Hesse. In this capacity, he was one of the state's representatives on the Bundesrat. From 2002 until 2012, Gerhardt was Vice President of

Liberal International Liberal International (LI) is a worldwide organization of liberal political parties - a political international. It was founded in Oxford in 1947 and has become the pre-eminent network for liberal parties, aiming to strengthen liberalism around ...

(LI), under the leadership of successive presidents

Annemie Neyts-Uyttebroeck Anne-Marie Cécile J. Neyts-Uyttebroeck (; born 17 June 1944) is a Belgian politician and was a Member of the European Parliament for Flanders with the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats, member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for E ...

(2002–2005),

John Alderdice John Thomas Alderdice, Baron Alderdice (born 28 March 1955) is a Northern Ireland politician. He was the Speaker and a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for East Belfast from 1998 to 2004 and 1998 to 2003, respectively. Alderdi ...

(2005–2009), and

Hans van Baalen Johannes Cornelis "Hans" van Baalen (17 June 1960 – 29 April 2021) was a Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) who served as a Member of the European Parliament and Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and ...

(2009–2011). Ahead of the 2005 national elections, Gerhard was billed as a possible foreign minister in a new centre-right coalition with the Christian Democrats; instead, newly elected

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 Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Oppo ...

entered a coalition with 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 ...

. Gerhardt was succeeded as chairman of the FDP parliamentary group by Westerwelle in 2006. Between 2006 and 2013, he served on the Committee on Foreign Affairs. Since 2006, Gerhardt has been serving as chairman of the board of the

Friedrich Naumann Foundation The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (german: Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit) (''FNF''), is a German foundation for liberal politics, related to the Free Democratic Party. Established in 1958 by Theodor Heuss, the first pres ...

Other activities

Corporate boards

* Alte Leipziger Lebensversicherung aG, Member of the Advisory Board * Hallesche-Nationale Krankenversicherung aG, Member of the Advisory Board * Rücker AG, Member of the Supervisory Board *

Deutsche Vermögensberatung Deutsche Vermögensberatung (DVAG), which loosely translates into English as "German wealth advisors", is a company based in Frankfurt, Germany. The DVAG is active in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Founded in 1975 by Reinfried Pohl, the company ...

(DVAG), Member of the Advisory Board (1995)

Non-profits

* Theodor Heuss House, Chairman of the Board of Trustees * Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research, Member of the Board of Trustees * German Association for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses (BVMW), Member of the Political Advisory Board *

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (german: Denkmal für die ermordeten Juden Europas), also known as the Holocaust Memorial (German: ''Holocaust-Mahnmal''), is a memorial in Berlin to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, designed by arc ...

, Member of the Advisory Board *

German Institute for International and Security Affairs The German Institute for International and Security Affairs (german: Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik; SWP) is a German think tank in international relations and security studies. A semi-official organization with close links to the federal gov ...

(SWP), Member of the Council (2005–2013) * Turkey: Culture of Change Initiative (TCCI), Member of the Advisory BoardAdvisory Board
Turkey: Culture of Change Initiative (TCCI).

Personal life

Gerhardt is married and has two children.

References

1943 births Living people Members of the Bundestag for Hesse Members of the Bundestag 2009–2013 Members of the Bundestag 2005–2009 Members of the Bundestag 2002–2005 Members of the Bundestag 1998–2002 Members of the Bundestag 1994–1998 Members of the Bundestag for the Free Democratic Party (Germany) {{Germany-FDP-politician-stub