Five Surprising Faces in Germany’s New Parliament

BERLIN, 25th March 2025 (BSS/AFP) – Germany’s new parliament convenes for the first time on Tuesday with a reduced headcount, a decrease in female representation, and a record number of lawmakers from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD). Here are five notable figures from the new chamber:

– Helmut Kohl’s Grandson –

Johannes Volkmann, the 28-year-old grandson of Helmut Kohl, the architect of German reunification, has stepped into the political spotlight. Born in 1996, Volkmann was initially named after his grandfather but took his mother’s surname to protect his privacy. A member of the Christian Democrats (CDU), Volkmann has shown an interest in politics from a young age, joining the CDU’s youth wing at 14. After studying economics, politics, sociology, and Chinese studies, including a semester in Shanghai and Beijing, Volkmann worked as chief of staff to a Member of the European Parliament. In 2024, he became the youngest member of the CDU’s executive committee. Now, he has taken up his grandfather’s political mantle, representing the CDU in the February elections.

– Merkel’s Far-Right Successor –

Dario Seifert, 31, from the AfD, caused a stir in February’s election by winning Angela Merkel’s former constituency on the Baltic Sea coast. Once a member of the youth wing of the neo-Nazi NPD party, Seifert described this as a “youthful indiscretion” and emphasised his “right to have evolved politically.” Known for his thick dark hair, neatly trimmed moustache, and leather jacket, Seifert has come to symbolise the AfD’s growing influence in the ex-communist east of Germany. Merkel represented this northern constituency for over three decades before retiring in 2021, leaving it open for a new political figure to emerge.

– The Face of Integration –

Awet Tesfaiesus, 50, made history as the first black woman to be elected to the Bundestag in 2021 and was re-elected this year as a member of the Greens. Arriving in Germany at the age of 10, Tesfaiesus fled the Eritrean war of independence with her family. A lawyer specialising in asylum and refugee representation, she entered politics following the tragic Hanau shooting spree in 2020, in which nine people were killed by a far-right extremist. Tesfaiesus has strongly criticised the AfD for its racist rhetoric, emphasising her desire to represent Germany as a black woman, stating, “If the AfD is there, then I also want to be there.”

– The Demoted Chancellor –

Olaf Scholz, leader of the Social Democrats (SPD), endured the worst electoral result in his party’s history in February, securing only 16.4 percent of the vote. Despite this, the SPD is expected to be part of the next government. However, Scholz has ruled out taking a senior role under the likely next chancellor, Friedrich Merz of the conservative CDU. Unusually for a former chancellor, Scholz narrowly won his constituency in Potsdam, near Berlin, and is returning to the Bundestag as a Member of Parliament (MP).

– The Old Comrade –

At 77, Gregor Gysi is the longest-serving member of the new German parliament, with 30 years and nine months of service. A prominent figure in the far-left Die Linke party, Gysi worked as a lawyer in East Germany before helping to reform the old communist party following the fall of the Berlin Wall. He was first elected to the Bundestag in 1990 after German reunification. Despite Die Linke struggling to maintain the five-percent threshold for parliamentary representation, the party made a surprising comeback in the final weeks before the election. Gysi’s social media campaign, featuring him alongside two other “old comrades,” became a sensation, and he even gained popularity on TikTok after a techno DJ created a video from his speeches.

This new German parliament reflects a shift in the country’s political landscape, with younger faces, far-right influence, and a resurgence of figures from across the political spectrum. The diverse backgrounds and stories of these five individuals offer a snapshot of the changing dynamics in Germany’s national politics.