Kurt Biedenkopf is a member of the Christian-Democratic Union. He entered his professional political career when he became secretary general of the CDU in 1973, under the leadership of chairman Helmut Kohl. He resigned from that office after disagreements with Kohl and went on to become one of his fiercest rivals within the party. From 1977 to 1983 Biedenkopf was a deputy chairman of the party. During the terms 1976-1980 and 1987-1990 he was a member of the Bundestag. In 1979, it was revealed that Christel Broszey, Biedenkopf’s secretary in his position as deputy chairman of the Christian Democratic Party, disappeared and was presumed to have fled to East Germany. Media reported that Broszey had been a spy.
In the 1980 state elections in North Rhine-Westphalia, Biedenkopf unsuccessfully ran against the incumbent Minister-President Johannes Rau. He served as chairman of the CDU in North Rhine-Westphalia – the party’s largest chapter – until 1987, when he was succeeded by Norbert Blüm. In late 1989, he joined forces with Lothar Späth, Heiner Geißler, Rita Süssmuth and others in an unsuccessful effort to oust Kohl as CDU chairman.
Minister-President of Saxony
After the re-unification of Germany in 1990 Biedenkopf was elected as Minister-President in the newly formed state of Saxony. His party also won the subsequent elections in 1994 and 1999 with an absolute majority. He held his office until April 2002. At the CDU's initiative, the state parliament resolved to declare Saxony a "free state" once again, recalling its 19th century history. Early in his tenure, Biedenkopf emerged as a kind of unofficial spokesman for the regions of East Germany. He enjoyed great popularity among a majority of the people of Saxony. Known for his autocraticleadership style, he was often referred to as "the Saxon king" or "King Kurt." During his time in office, he doubled outlays on primary and secondary education and sharply ramped up spending on research and development. He also led a legal battle against the European Commission on subsidies for Volkswagen investments in Saxony. Ahead of the German presidential election in 1994, Biedenkopf was widely seen as a likely candidate; the post instead went to Roman Herzog. In 2000, Biedenkopf held the rotating presidency of the Bundesrat of Germany. In this capacity, he oversaw the body's move to Berlin to complete the government's return to the prewar capital from Bonn. In January 2001, Biedenkopf dismissed State Minister of FinanceGeorg Milbradt because Milbradt had started a debate about Biedenkopf's succession. Milbradt eventually succeeded Biedenkopf in 2002.
Political positions
Before the introduction of the euro, Biedenkopf was the only German state leader to vote against the monetary union in the Bundesrat, the legislative body that represents the German states; he later argued that "Europe wasn't ready for that epochal step." Already in 1997, he had joined the ministers-president of two other German states, Gerhard Schröder and Edmund Stoiber, in making the case for a five-year delay in Europe's currency union. Ahead of the Christian Democrats’ leadership election in 2018, Biedenkopf publicly endorsed Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer to succeed Angela Merkel as the party’s chair.
Other activities
In 1983, Biedenkopf became a member of the Advisory Board of the non-profit Bertelsmann Stiftung. In 1987, he became chairman of the board. During his term, the Carl Bertelsmann Prize was awarded for the first time. Between 2004 and 2006, Biedenkopf and Christine Bergmann served as ombudsmen, observing the impact of the Schröder government’s labour market reforms, with a mandate to advise government and parliament on any recommended revisions to it. In 2005, he was appointed by Chancellor Gerhard Schröder to head a commission on the future of codetermination in Germany. Both Biedenkopf and Schröder later served as mediators in a 2006 conflict over privatization plans at German railway operator Deutsche Bahn; the plans eventually fell through. In addition, Biedenkopf has been holding a number of paid and unpaid positions, including the following:
