Vice-Chancellor of Germany
Vice-Chancellor of Germany
Stellvertreter des Bundeskanzlers | |
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![]() Coat of arms of the German Government | |
Member of | Federal Cabinet of Germany |
Appointer | Chancellor of Germany |
Term length | at the Chancellor's pleasure |
Constituting instrument | German Basic Law |
Formation | 1 June 1878 (Empire) 24 May 1949 (Republic) |
First holder | Otto of Stolberg-Wernigerode (Empire) Franz Blücher (Republic) |
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The Deputy to the Federal Chancellor (German: Stellvertreter des Bundeskanzlers), commonly known as Vice-Chancellor (Vizekanzler), is the second highest ranking German cabinet member. The chancellor is the head of government and, according to the constitution, gives this title of deputy to one of the Federal Ministers. It is common that the title is given to the major minister provided by the (smaller) coalition partner.
In everyday politics, being a vice chancellor is more an honorary title. The vice chancellor may head cabinet meetings when the chancellor is abroad. The function of vice chancellor is to use the specific constitutional powers of the chancellor in case that the chancellor is unable to perform her duties. This kind of substitution has never been made use of in the history of the Federal Republic.
Should a chancellor resign, die or be permanently unable to perform her duties, the vice chancellor does not automatically replace her. In such a case the Federal President assigns a minister to serve as acting chancellor until the Bundestag (parliament) elects a new chancellor.[1]).
Although Stellvertreter is the constitutional term, most Germans know the Deputy by the expression Vice-Chancellor (Vizekanzler). Chancellor (Kanzler) is the traditional term for the German head of government since 1867/71. A general deputy has been introduced only in 1878 by law (Stellvertretungsgesetz). In the Weimar Republic of 1919–1933, the office of Vizekanzler was mentioned in the internal reglement of the government. The current office or title has existed since the constitution of 1949.
The current Vice-Chancellor of Germany is Olaf Scholz (SPD). He was appointed by Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) to the position on 14 March 2018 and also serves as the Federal Minister of Finance.
Office and appointment mechanism[]
The German cabinet consists of the Chancellor and the Federal Ministers. According to the Basic Law (Article 69.1), the Chancellor appoints one of the ministers as Vice-Chancellor. In contrast to the appointment of a cabinet minister, there is no need for a formal appointment by the President. The appointment is an exclusive power of the Chancellor.
The Chancellor is theoretically free to choose his or her deputy. Nevertheless, a German government is usually based on a coalition of two or more parties and the Chancellor gives the title to a minister of the second largest coalition party upon recommendation of that party's leadership.
The German Vice-Chancellor can be regarded as the equivalent of a deputy prime minister in other parliamentary systems. A very important difference to e.g. the Vice President in presidential systems of government is that the German Vice-Chancellor is not the automatic successor of a Chancellor suddenly leaving office. The Deputy is thought only as a replacement for the current Chancellor.
A German cabinet exists only as long as the current Chancellor is in office. The end of a Chancellor's term in office (either by death or resignation or the first meeting of a newly elected Bundestag) automatically terminates the office of any minister. If this happens, the President of Germany appoints the former Chancellor or, if this is not possible, one of the former cabinet ministers (not necessarily, but most likely the former Vice-Chancellor) as Acting Chancellor, until the parliament elects a new Chancellor.[2] When in 1974 Chancellor Willy Brandt resigned and refused to remain in office until his successor's election, President Gustav Heinemann ensured a corresponding precedent and appointed former Vice-Chancellor Walter Scheel as Acting Chancellor.
The Basic Law does not state who shall perform the Chancellor's powers and duties, if both the Chancellor and the Vice-Chancellor are unable to do so. The German cabinet's rules of procedure state that in absence of both office-holders cabinet meetings shall be chaired by a cabinet member designated for this purpose by either the Chancellor or the Vice-Chancellor or, if such a designation has not taken place or if the designee is not able to do so, by the present cabinet member with the longest uninterrupted membership in the federal government (§22.1).[3] It is however unclear, whether this provision extends to other powers of the office of Chancellor. In an expertise issued by the Bundestag's scientific service in 2014, the legal opinion is that this is the case.[4]
History[]
The office was initially established by the 1878 Stellvertretungsgesetz (Deputation Act), which provided for the Imperial Chancellor appointing a deputy, officially known as Allgemeiner Stellvertreter des Reichskanzlers (General Deputy to the Imperial Chancellor). In addition to the general deputy, who would be responsible for all the affairs of the Chancellor, the Chancellor could appoint deputies with limited responsibilities. The act was revised on 28 October 1918, when the possibility of appointing deputies with limited responsibilities was removed and the Vice-Chancellor was given the right to appear before parliament.[5]
In the Weimar Republic, the office was considered less important and was usually held by the minister of justice or the interior. The most known office holder is Franz von Papen, a former Chancellor who formed a coalition government of national socialists and conservatives. Adolf Hitler became Chancellor, and Papen Vice-Chancellor. It became soon obvious that the position of Vice-Chancellor provided no powers and was unsuited to constrain Hitler.
In the Federal Republic (since 1949), the Chancellors have had no interest in allowing the Deputy to use the title for self promotion.[6] Since 1966 it became customary that the coalition partner of the governing party received the ministry of the exterior who was also appointed Deputy. The ministry of the exterior was considered to be the most important cabinet post besides the Chancellorship. This tradition faded away in the time of Merkel's office, partially, because political heavyweights of the coalition partner chose a different ministry for personal preference.
List of vice-chancellors[]
German Empire (1871–1918)[]
No. | Portrait | Name | Birth | Death | Term start | Age start | Term end | Age end | Days | Party | Portfolio | Cabinet | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The General Deputy to the Chancellor of the Reich | ||||||||||||||
1 | ![]() |
Otto Graf zu Stolberg-Wernigerode | 30 October 1837 | 19 November 1896 | 1 June 1878 | 40 | 20 June 1881 | 43 | 1115 | FKP | Bismarck | |||
2 | ![]() |
Karl Heinrich von Boetticher | 6 January 1833 | 6 March 1907 | 20 June 1881 | 48 | 1 July 1897 | 64 | 5855 | FKP | Secretary of State for the Interior | Bismarck | ||
Caprivi | ||||||||||||||
Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst | ||||||||||||||
3 | ![]() |
Arthur von Posadowsky-Wehner | 3 June 1845 | 23 October 1932 | 1 July 1897 | 52 | 24 June 1907 | 62 | 3644 | FKP | Secretary of State for the Interior | Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst | ||
Bülow | ||||||||||||||
4 | ![]() |
Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg | 29 November 1856 | 1 January 1921 | 24 June 1907 | 50 | 14 July 1909 | 52 | 751 | Independent | Secretary of State for the Interior | Bülow | ||
5 | ![]() |
Clemens von Delbrück | 19 January 1856 | 17 December 1921 | 14 July 1909 | 53 | 22 May 1916 | 60 | 2501 | Independent | Secretary of State for the Interior | Bethmann-Hollweg | ||
7 | ![]() |
Karl Helfferich | 22 July 1872 | 23 April 1924 | 22 May 1916 | 43 | 9 November 1917 | 45 | 536 | Independent | Secretary of State for the Interior (until 23 October 1917) | Bethmann-Hollweg | ||
Michaelis | ||||||||||||||
Hertling | ||||||||||||||
8 | ![]() |
Friedrich von Payer | 12 June 1847 | 14 July 1931 | 9 November 1917 | 70 | 10 November 1918 | 71 | 366 | FVP | Hertling | |||
Baden | ||||||||||||||
Ebert |
Weimar Republic (1918–1933)[]
Political Party: DDP Centre DVP SPD DNVP
No. | Portrait | Name | Birth | Death | Term start | Age start | Term end | Age end | Days | Party | Portfolio | Cabinet | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The General Deputy to the Chancellor of the Reich | ||||||||||||||
1 | ![]() |
Eugen Schiffer | 14 February 1860 | 5 September 1954 | 13 February 1919 | 58 | 19 April 1919 | 59 | 65 | DDP | Deputy Minister-President / Minister of Finance | Scheidemann | ||
2 | ![]() |
Bernhard Dernburg | 17 July 1865 | 14 October 1937 | 30 April 1919 | 53 | 20 June 1919 | 53 | 51 | DDP | Deputy Minister-President / Minister of Finance | Scheidemann | ||
3 | ![]() |
Matthias Erzberger | 20 September 1875 | 26 August 1921 | 21 June 1919 | 43 | 3 October 1919 | 44 | 104 | Centre | Deputy Minister-President (until 14 August 1919) / Minister of Finance | Bauer | ||
(1) | ![]() |
Eugen Schiffer | 14 February 1860 | 5 September 1954 | 3 October 1919 | 59 | 27 March 1920 | 60 | 176 | DDP | Minister of Justice | Bauer | ||
4 | ![]() |
Erich Koch-Weser | 26 February 1875 | 19 October 1944 | 27 March 1920 | 45 | 21 June 1920 | 45 | 86 | DDP | Minister of the Interior | Müller I | ||
5 | ![]() |
Rudolf Heinze | 22 July 1865 | 26 May 1928 | 25 June 1920 | 54 | 4 May 1921 | 55 | 313 | DVP | Minister of Justice | Fehrenbach | ||
6 | ![]() |
Gustav Bauer | 6 January 1870 | 16 September 1944 | 10 May 1921 | 51 | 14 November 1922 | 52 | 553 | SPD | Minister of Finance | Wirth I | ||
Wirth II | ||||||||||||||
7 | ![]() |
Robert Schmidt | 15 May 1864 | 16 September 1943 | 13 August 1923 | 59 | 3 November 1923 | 59 | 82 | SPD | Minister for Reconstruction | Stresemann I | ||
8 | ![]() |
Karl Jarres | 21 September 1874 | 20 October 1951 | 30 November 1923 | 49 | 15 December 1924 | 50 | 381 | DVP | Minister of the Interior | Marx I | ||
Marx II | ||||||||||||||
9 | ![]() |
Oskar Hergt | 22 October 1869 | 9 May 1967 | 28 January 1927 | 57 | 12 June 1928 | 58 | 501 | DNVP | Minister of Justice | Marx IV | ||
10 | ![]() |
Hermann Dietrich | 14 December 1879 | 6 March 1954 | 30 March 1930 | 50 | 30 May 1932 | 52 | 792 | DDP | Minister of Finance (from 26 June 1930) | Brüning I | ||
Brüning II |
Nazi Germany (1933–1945)[]
No. | Portrait | Name | Term start | Age start | Term end | Age end | Days | Party | Portfolio | Other positions | Cabinet | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Deputy to the Chancellor of the Reich | ||||||||||||||
11 | ![]() |
Franz von Papen (1879–1969) |
30 January 1933 | 53 | 7 August 1934 | 54 | 554 | Non-partisan | Minister President of Prussia (until 10 April 1933) | Hitler | ||||
From 7 August 1934 until 20 September 1949, the office of the Vice-Chancellor of Germany was abolished. |
Federal Republic of Germany (1949–present)[]
Political Party: FDP CDU SPD Green
No. | Portrait | Name | Term start | Age start | Term end | Age end | Days | Party | Portfolio | Cabinet | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vice-Chancellor of Germany The Deputy to the Federal Chancellor (de jure) | ||||||||||||||
1 | ![]() |
Franz Blücher (1896–1959) |
20 September 1949 | 53 | 29 October 1957 | 61 | 2961 | FDP/FVP | Marshall Plan (1949–1953) Economic Cooperation (1953–1957) |
Adenauer I • II | ||||
2 | ![]() |
Ludwig Erhard (1897–1977) |
29 October 1957 | 60 | 16 October 1963 | 66 | 2178 | Independent (No party membership; but affiliated with the CDU) |
Economic Affairs | Adenauer III • IV • V | ||||
3 | ![]() |
Erich Mende (1916–1998) |
17 October 1963 | 46 | 28 October 1966 | 50 | 1107 | FDP | Intra-German Relations | Erhard I • II | ||||
4 | ![]() |
Hans-Christoph Seebohm (1903–1967) |
8 November 1966 | 63 | 30 November 1966 | 63 | 22 | CDU | Transport | Erhard II | ||||
5 | ![]() |
Willy Brandt (1913–1992) |
1 December 1966 | 52 | 20 October 1969 | 55 | 1054 | SPD | Foreign Affairs | Kiesinger | ||||
6 | ![]() |
Walter Scheel (1919–2016) |
21 October 1969 | 50 | 16 May 1974 | 54 | 1668 | FDP | Foreign Affairs | Brandt I • II | ||||
7 | ![]() |
Hans-Dietrich Genscher (1927–2016) |
17 May 1974 | 47 | 17 September 1982 | 55 | 3045 | FDP | Foreign Affairs | Schmidt I • II • III | ||||
8 | ![]() |
Egon Franke (1913–1995) |
17 September 1982 | 69 | 1 October 1982 | 69 | 14 | SPD | Intra-German Relations | Schmidt III | ||||
(7) | ![]() |
Hans-Dietrich Genscher (1927–2016) |
1 October 1982 | 55 | 17 May 1992 | 65 | 3516 | FDP | Foreign Affairs | Kohl I • II • III • IV | ||||
9 | ![]() |
Jürgen Möllemann (1945–2003) |
18 May 1992 | 46 | 21 January 1993 | 47 | 248 | FDP | Economic Affairs | Kohl IV | ||||
10 | ![]() |
Klaus Kinkel (1936–2019) |
21 January 1993 | 56 | 26 October 1998 | 61 | 2104 | FDP | Foreign Affairs | Kohl IV • V | ||||
11 | ![]() |
Joschka Fischer (b. 1948) |
27 October 1998 | 50 | 22 November 2005 | 57 | 2583 | Green | Foreign Affairs | Schröder I • II | ||||
12 | ![]() |
Franz Müntefering (b. 1940) |
22 November 2005 | 65 | 21 November 2007 | 67 | 729 | SPD | Labour and Social Affairs | Merkel I | ||||
13 | ![]() |
Frank-Walter Steinmeier (b. 1956) |
21 November 2007 | 51 | 27 October 2009 | 53 | 706 | SPD | Foreign Affairs | Merkel I | ||||
14 | ![]() |
Guido Westerwelle (1961–2016) |
28 October 2009 | 47 | 16 May 2011 | 49 | 565 | FDP | Foreign Affairs | Merkel II | ||||
15 | ![]() |
Philipp Rösler (b. 1973) |
16 May 2011 | 38 | 17 December 2013 | 40 | 946 | FDP | Economic Affairs | Merkel II | ||||
16 | ![]() |
Sigmar Gabriel (b. 1959) |
17 December 2013 | 54 | 14 March 2018 | 58 | 1548 | SPD | Economic Affairs (2013–2017) Foreign Affairs (2017–2018) |
Merkel III | ||||
17 | ![]() |
Olaf Scholz (b. 1958) |
14 March 2018 | 59 | Incumbent | 63 | 1284 | SPD | Finance | Merkel IV |
References[]
- ^ Ute Mager, in: von Münch/Kunig: Grundgesetz-Kommentar II, 5. Auflage 2001, Rn. 10/11 zu Art. 69.
- ^ Georg Hermes, in: Horst Dreier (Hrsg.) Grundgesetz-Kommentar, Band 2, 2. Auflage 2006, Art. 69, Rn. 7, 17-19.
- ^ "Geschäftsordnung der Bundesregierung".
- ^ Wissenschaftlicher Dienst des Bundestages. Sachstand. Vertretungsregelungen für das Amt des Bundeskanzlers und des Bundespräsidenten (AZ: WD 3-3000-016/14), p. 3–4.
- ^ "Gesetz, betreffend die Stellvertretung des Reichskanzlers ["Stellvertretungsgesetz"] (17.03.1878)". www.documentarchiv.de (in German). Retrieved 2019-08-26.
- ^ Roman Herzog, in: Maunz/Dürig: Kommentar zum Grundgesetz, 2008, Art. 69, Rn. 9.
- Vice-Chancellors of Germany
- Federal Government of Germany