Aigner, frontrunner for German presidency: “I will reach out to those who feel left out”

[Financial News] Ilse Aigner, president of the Bavarian State Parliament and the leading contender to become Germany’s first female president, said on the 9th (local time), “I don’t want to stand above the citizens; I am simply one of them.”
After being officially nominated that day as the joint candidate of the governing Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU) for the next president, Aigner held a press conference and said, “My language will be clear and easy to understand.” She added, “I am in politics to overcome divisions and bring people together, and to reach out even to those who may feel left out.”
“Unity does not mean turning a blind eye to attacks on democracy,” she said, adding that she would represent the “strong center” and fight extremist and populist forces.
CDU leader and Chancellor Friedrich Merz said, “Germany has gained a federal president with dignity and a warm heart,” adding, “She will be a president who brings people together and provides direction.”
The Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Green Party were also reported to have decided to support Aigner without fielding candidates of their own.
Aigner, a member of the CSU, a regional party in Bavaria, earned a secondary-school qualification at a Realschule, a school described as akin to a vocational school, and trained as a radio and TV engineer without attending university. She is also said to have worked for Eurocopter, a developer of electrical and electronic systems for helicopters, before entering politics.
If elected president, Aigner would make history as the first woman to serve as president of the Federal Republic of Germany, including during the former West German era. She would also be an unmarried president with no university degree and a technical background, drawing considerable attention.
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