Wolfgang Kubicki standing confidently at an FDP podium with an empty chair symbolizing Henning Höne's withdrawal from candidacy.
Wolfgang Kubicki standing confidently at an FDP podium with an empty chair symbolizing Henning Höne's withdrawal from candidacy.
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Höne withdraws candidacy, Kubicki sole contender for FDP chair

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Henning Höne has withdrawn his bid for the FDP party chairmanship. Wolfgang Kubicki is now the sole candidate for the post, which is due to be filled at the end of May.

North Rhine-Westphalia FDP chairman Henning Höne will no longer run against Wolfgang Kubicki. Instead he plans to stand as Kubicki’s first deputy. An FDP North Rhine-Westphalia spokesperson confirmed the report on Friday.

Höne explained the move by saying party members had called for a joint leadership solution. Kubicki had announced he would withdraw completely from the leadership in case of defeat.

Kubicki told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: “Back then the team was called Lindner-Kubicki, now it is called Kubicki-Höne.” The 39-year-old Höne also currently leads the FDP parliamentary group in the Düsseldorf state parliament.

The agreement avoids an open power struggle at the party conference at the end of May.

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Reactions on X to Höne withdrawing his FDP chair bid, leaving Kubicki as sole candidate, include approval for preventing internal division and calls for unity, alongside criticism of avoiding competitive debate and concerns over party renewal.

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News illustration of FDP leadership race: Kubicki shakes hands with supportive Dürr at congress podium, Höne observing in background.
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FDP leadership race: Kubicki candidacy gains momentum as Dürr withdraws support

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FDP vice-chairman Wolfgang Kubicki has launched his bid for party leadership, with incumbent chairman Christian Dürr withdrawing his own candidacy to back Kubicki and maintain unity. NRW leader Henning Höne remains a challenger ahead of the late-May congress.

Wolfgang Kubicki has taken over as FDP chair after Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann challenged him narrowly. The two are now exchanging conciliatory tones.

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Wolfgang Kubicki defeated Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann in a leadership vote at the FDP federal party congress on May 30, 2026, in Berlin and is the new party chairman.

Reiner Haseloff, former Minister President of Saxony-Anhalt, attributed the AfD's strength to distrust in established parties in an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung. He warned of the consequences of a potential AfD government after the state election on September 6. A coalition with the AfD is out of the question for the CDU, as it aims to destroy the party.

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Four months before the state election in Saxony-Anhalt, the AfD is preparing a comprehensive personnel overhaul in ministries and authorities. Top candidate Ulrich Siegmund considers 150 to 200 positions realistic. The party fears resistance from the existing administrative apparatus.

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