New trio for Karlsruhe: election of judges causes excitement!

New trio for Karlsruhe: election of judges causes excitement!

It's like a breath of fresh air in Karlsruhe: On September 26, 2025, the Bundestag elected three new constitutional judges at the second attempt. In an exciting vote, the candidates received clear support from the ranks of the MPs. ZDF today reports that Sigrid Emmenegger received 446 yes votes, Ann-Kathrin Kaufhold 440 and Günter Spinner 424. This was the necessary two-thirds majority of 409 votes out of a total of 613 votes cast. Bundestag Vice President Andrea Lindholz proudly announced the election.

The election was particularly necessary after a previous attempt failed in July 2025. There were a few reasons for this: Among other things, the candidate Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf was rejected by parts of the Union, primarily because of her controversial positions on abortion rights. This failed election put a strain on trust within the governing coalition of the SPD and the CDU/CSU, whose political climate was noticeably clouded by these unrest.

The new judges

The newly elected judges bring a lot of experience with them. Sigrid Emmenegger, born on October 4, 1976 in Freiburg, has acquired crucial knowledge over the years. She completed her law studies in Freiburg and Uppsala before completing her doctorate on the “art of legislation” in the German Empire. Her judicial career began in 2007 at the Koblenz Administrative Court, and she gained experience at various administrative courts before becoming a judge at the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig in 2021. Emmenegger was nominated by the SPD and will succeed Doris König in the Second Senate of the Federal Constitutional Court Deutschlandfunk.

Ann-Kathrin Kaufhold, born in 1976, also has an impressive CV. She began her legal career in Freiburg and Berlin and has been a professor of constitutional and administrative law at the Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich since 2016. In a controversial role, she is a member of a commission for the “socialization of large housing companies”, which was not without criticism in the public debate. Kaufhold was also nominated by the SPD and succeeds Ulrich Maidowski in the Second Senate of the Federal Constitutional Court Deutschlandfunk.

The third member of the group is Günter Spinner, who has been working at the Federal Labor Court in Erfurt since 2011, where he has chaired the eighth Senate since September 2023. At 53 years old, he has a lot of experience and was nominated by the Union as a constitutional judge. Spinner succeeds Josef Christ and contributes his expertise as a member of the First Senate ZDF today.

A new beginning for the coalition?

The election of the new constitutional judges could mean a new beginning for the governing coalition. After the turbulent election in July, the SPD and the Union are setting out to concentrate on reform projects in the areas of social, health and economic policy. The SPD parliamentary group leadership, represented by Matthias Miersch, also thanked the MPs from the Left and Greens for their support. The AfD's role in the election remains unclear as the vote was secret. Despite the agreement within the Union, there are still concerns and tensions within the parliamentary group ZDF today.

The course is set. It remains to be seen what challenges and changes the new constitutional judges in Karlsruhe will bring with them and how they will influence the political landscape in Germany.