Manuel Hagel

Manuel Hagel (born 1 May 1988 in Ehingen) is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who has served as Deputy Minister-President of Baden-Württemberg and Minister of the Interior, Digitalisation and Europe since 13 May 2026. He is state chairman of the CDU in Baden-Württemberg since November 2023 and a member of the Landtag of Baden-Württemberg since 2016. He previously served as leader of the CDU parliamentary group from 2021 to 2026 and as general secretary of the CDU Baden-Württemberg from 2016 to 2021.

Hagel's early career involved training as a bank clerk from 2005 to 2008, followed by further qualifications as a banking specialist in 2009 and banking operations manager from 2010 to 2011, as well as a management degree from the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management in 2013. He worked as branch director for the Sparkasse in Ehingen from 2014 until entering politics full-time in 2016. Politically active since joining the CDU in 2006, he began in local government as a councilor in Ehingen in 2009, becoming CDU faction leader there in 2014 and serving as deputy mayor until 2026.

In May 2025, Hagel was selected as the CDU's lead candidate for Minister-President of Baden-Württemberg in the 2026 state election. The CDU finished a close second to the Greens with 29.7 % of the vote on 8 March 2026. After coalition negotiations, he was appointed Deputy Minister-President and Interior Minister in the green-black government led by Cem Özdemir on 13 May 2026. His rise reflects a focus on party renewal and conservative values within the CDU.

Background

Early life

Manuel Hagel was born on 1 May 1988 in Ehingen (Donau), a town in the Swabian region of Baden-Württemberg. He grew up as the son of a policeman from an Upper Swabian farming family, in a Roman Catholic household that influenced his early years.

Pre-political career

Before entering politics, Manuel Hagel worked as an employee at Sparkasse Ulm, eventually rising to the position of branch director (Filialdirektor) at the Ehingen branch.

He pursued professional development in banking, including further training starting in 2009 and earning a Diplom-Bankbetriebswirt qualification between 2013 and 2014. This career in the financial sector lasted until his transition to full-time political roles upon election to the Landtag.

Political career

Party involvement

Hagel began his engagement with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) through its youth wing, the Junge Union Baden-Württemberg, where he rose to serve as deputy state chairman from 2015 to 2016. This early role marked his initial organizational involvement within the party's structures in the state.

From 2016 to 2021, he served as general secretary of the CDU Baden-Württemberg, supporting the state leadership under chairman Thomas Strobl in party administration and strategy. Additionally, between 2019 and 2023, Hagel chaired the CDU district association in his home region, focusing on local party coordination and member mobilization. These mid-level positions built on his transition from banking to deepen his influence in CDU operations prior to higher responsibilities.

Legislative roles

Hagel entered the Landtag of Baden-Württemberg on 6 April 2016 as a member representing Wahlkreis 65 (Ehingen) via direct mandate. He secured re-election in the 2021 state election for the same constituency.

Within the Landtag, Hagel chaired the CDU parliamentary group from 2021 until May 2026. He was re-elected in 2026, winning the Ehingen constituency with 47.1 % of first votes.

State leadership

Manuel Hagel serves as Landesvorsitzender (state chairman) of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Baden-Württemberg, a position he has held since his initial election, with re-election in December 2025 achieving a top result at the party's state congress in Heidelberg.

In this executive role, Hagel has steered party policy toward economic renewal and firm opposition to political extremism, reinforcing the CDU's strategic positioning within the state. Post-2023, his influence on internal dynamics is evident in public addresses at party events, where he has critiqued the federal Ampel coalition's approach to European relations—such as alleged humiliation of France—and labeled the AfD as "Vaterlandsverräter" (traitors to the fatherland), consolidating the party's conservative stance while fostering dialogue on core values.

2026 candidacy

Nomination

In May 2025, Manuel Hagel was nominated as the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) candidate for Minister-President of Baden-Württemberg ahead of the 2026 state election.

The selection occurred at the 81st Landesparteitag of the CDU Baden-Württemberg, held on 17 May 2025 in the Carl-Benz-Arena, where Hagel secured 93.8% of the delegate votes for the top candidacy position. His prior election as state party chairman in 2021 facilitated his unchallenged path to the nomination.

Campaign positions

Hagel's campaign emphasizes restoring Baden-Württemberg's economic strength by positioning the state as Europe's top innovation hub, with investments in sectors like artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and defense, alongside streamlined regulations for businesses and flexible labor laws to boost employment. On migration, he advocates attracting skilled workers while enforcing stricter controls on irregular entries, faster deportations, and integration measures prioritizing German language proficiency in workplaces.

In education, Hagel promotes mandatory free final kindergarten years focused on language skills under his slogan "First German language, then first grade," alongside preserving tiered schooling, banning smartphones in classrooms, and enhancing vocational training incentives. He opposes a blanket social media ban for those under 16, favoring balanced regulation over prohibitions, while supporting reductions in real estate transfer taxes to spur housing construction and efforts to lower energy costs through infrastructure expansion.

The campaign faced scrutiny over a 2018 video resurfaced by Green politician Zoe Mayer, in which Hagel described a school visit with mostly female students as an appealing "appointment" for a young parliamentarian and detailed a pupil's appearance, prompting sexism accusations shortly before the election. Hagel dismissed the timing as opportunistic, defending the remarks as highlighting language's role in politics rather than personal admiration.