Wiebke Winter: Bremen's CDU now has its first female leadership!

Wiebke Winter: Bremen's CDU now has its first female leadership!

The Bremen CDU has received a new wind in its ranks: Wiebke Winter was elected as the new parliamentary group leader on June 16, 2025, making her the first woman to hold this position in the history of the Bremen CDU. In the election she received an impressive 22 out of 24 votes, with only one vote against her and one abstention. She is following in the footsteps of Frank Imhoff, who did not run for parliamentary group chairmanship after a long political career, but will remain active as a member of parliament. Imhoff had previously proposed Winter as his successor and spoke of a significant generational change within the party, which should provide fresh momentum.

Wiebke Winter, who was born in Kiel in 1996 and moved to Bremen in 1999, is only 29 years old and has been a member of the Bremen citizenship for two years. She was previously deputy parliamentary group leader and made a name for herself on the state and federal executive boards of the CDU. She didn't dream of starting out in politics by chance: the young politician is valedictorian of Vegesack High School, studied law and received her doctorate from the renowned Bucerius Law School. In January 2021 she was elected to the CDU federal executive board and is also a co-founder of the “Climate Union”.

A clear course for the future

Winter has set himself the goal of achieving a 30 percent share of the vote for the CDU in the next state election in 2027. “We have to approach citizens and take their concerns seriously,” she emphasized in her inaugural speech. She wants to present the CDU as an attractive and modern party that appeals not only to older voters, but especially to the younger generation.

With the election of Winter and the appointment of Martin Michalik and party leader Heiko Strohmann as their deputies, it is clear that the Bremen CDU is relying on a new strategy and a new team. It is particularly noteworthy that Wiebke Winter rose to the top as a woman at a time when the political representation of women still needs to be expanded. A look at history shows how the sun and shadow of the proportion of women in politics has changed: Since the introduction of equal rights in the Basic Law, women have been legally equal, but the implementation in political offices has often fallen short of expectations.

The long road to equality

The proportion of women in politics is an issue that not only affects female politicians, but also society as a whole. According to an analysis of 50 years of women in politics, the proportion of women in the Bundestag in the 1960s and 1970s was a modest 10% or less. It wasn't until the 1980s that a positive development became apparent, and since then there has been continued progress, but often in waves, followed by stagnation. Wiebke Winter is also aware of the challenges that women face in politics and she strives to pave the way for a more inclusive and fair political landscape, just as Elisabeth Selbert significantly promoted with the Basic Law in 1949.

Wiebke Winter's successful entry into the Bremen CDU could be the beginning of a new chapter in the party and the city. Because the potential that lies in a generational change is immense. It remains exciting to see how she and her team will reshuffle the political cards in Bremen.

For further details about the election of Wiebke Winter as parliamentary group leader, read more at Time and District newspaper and find out more about the context of women's policy in Germany bpb.