Andrea Nahles facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Andrea Nahles
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Nahles in 2019
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| Leader of the Social Democratic Party | |
| In office 22 April 2018 – 3 June 2019 |
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| General Secretary | Lars Klingbeil |
| Deputy | Manuela Schwesig Natascha Kohnen Malu Dreyer Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel Ralf Stegner Olaf Scholz |
| Preceded by | Martin Schulz |
| Succeeded by | Malu Dreyer (Acting) Manuela Schwesig (Acting) Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel (Acting) Norbert Walter-Borjans & Saskia Esken (Elected) |
| Leader of the Social Democratic Party in the Bundestag | |
| In office 27 September 2017 – 4 June 2019 |
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| Chief Whip | Carsten Schneider |
| Preceded by | Thomas Oppermann |
| Succeeded by | Rolf Mützenich (Acting) |
| Minister of Labour and Social Affairs | |
| In office 17 December 2013 – 27 September 2017 |
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| Chancellor | Angela Merkel |
| Preceded by | Ursula von der Leyen |
| Succeeded by | Katarina Barley (Acting) |
| General Secretary of the Social Democratic Party | |
| In office 13 November 2009 – 26 January 2014 |
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| Leader | Sigmar Gabriel |
| Preceded by | Hubertus Heil |
| Succeeded by | Yasmin Fahimi |
| Deputy Leader of the Social Democratic Party | |
| In office 26 October 2007 – 12 November 2009 |
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| Leader | Kurt Beck Frank-Walter Steinmeier (Acting) Franz Müntefering |
| Preceded by | Kurt Beck |
| Succeeded by | Hannelore Kraft |
| Member of the Bundestag for Rhineland-Palatinate |
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| In office 18 September 2005 – 1 November 2019 |
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| Succeeded by | Joe Weingarten |
| In office 27 September 1998 – 22 September 2002 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Andrea Maria Nahles
20 June 1970 Mendig, West Germany |
| Political party | Social Democratic Party |
| Spouse | Marcus Frings (divorced) |
| Children | 1 |
| Alma mater | University of Bonn |
Andrea Maria Nahles (born 20 June 1970) is a German politician who has been the director of the Federal Employment Agency (BA) since 2022. She is known for her important roles in German politics.
Nahles was the leader of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) from April 2018 to June 2019. She also led the SPD group in the Bundestag (German Parliament) from September 2017 to June 2019. Before that, she was the Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs from 2013 to 2017. She also led the SPD Youth group. From 2020 to 2022, she was the president of the Federal Posts and Telecommunications Agency.
In June 2019, after the SPD's results in the European elections, she decided to step down from her leadership roles. She left the Bundestag on 31 October 2019.
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Early Life and Education
Andrea Nahles was born in 1970 in Mendig, a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, West Germany. She grew up in a rural area called the Eifel region. Her father was a bricklayer and her mother was an office clerk.
She finished high school in 1989 through a special program. Later, she studied politics, philosophy, and German studies at the University of Bonn. She earned a Master of Arts degree.
Political Career
Joining the SPD Party
Andrea Nahles joined the SPD party in 1988 when she was 18 years old. She quickly became active in youth politics. From 1995 to 1999, she was the national youth representative for the SPD. Since 1997, she has been a member of the SPD's main executive committee.
Nahles was known for having different ideas from some of the party's leaders, like Chancellor Gerhard Schröder. She often spoke up for the left-wing side of the party.
General Secretary of the SPD
In November 2009, Nahles was chosen as the SPD's General Secretary. This is a very important role in the party, helping to manage its daily work and campaigns. She worked closely with the party leader, Sigmar Gabriel. Many people saw her appointment as a sign that the SPD would move more towards left-wing policies.
As General Secretary, Nahles helped organize the SPD's election campaign in 2013. After the election, she was in charge of letting the party's members vote on whether to join a new government with Chancellor Angela Merkel's party.
Minister of Labour and Social Affairs
From 2013 to 2017, Andrea Nahles served as the Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs. In this role, she helped create new laws that affected workers and social welfare in Germany.
- Minimum Wage: She helped introduce a national minimum wage. This law made sure that workers in Germany earned at least 8.50 euros per hour.
- Early Retirement: She also helped pass a law that allowed some long-time workers to retire earlier.
- Holocaust Survivors: Nahles worked to extend pension payments for about 40,000 Holocaust survivors. These payments helped people who had suffered greatly during World War II.
Leader of the SPD in Parliament
After the 2017 elections, Andrea Nahles was chosen to lead the SPD group in the German Parliament (Bundestag). She was the first woman to hold this important position. In this role, she represented the SPD's views and helped guide their work in parliament.
Leader of the Social Democratic Party
On 22 April 2018, Andrea Nahles made history by becoming the first ever female leader of the Social Democratic Party. She won the election with 66% of the votes from party delegates. This was a big moment, as it was the first time both of Germany's two largest parties were led by women (the other being Angela Merkel of the CDU).
However, after the SPD had a difficult result in the 2019 European Parliament election, Nahles announced on 2 June 2019 that she would resign as SPD leader. She also stepped down as the leader of the SPD group in the Bundestag.
Life After Politics
After leaving her political leadership roles, Andrea Nahles continued to work in public service. From July 2020, she was a special advisor to European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights Nicolas Schmit.
From 2020 to 2022, Nahles was the president of the Federal Posts and Telecommunications Agency in Bonn. She also taught at the NRW School of Governance at the University of Duisburg-Essen.
In 2022, Andrea Nahles was chosen to be the director of the Federal Employment Agency (BA). This agency helps people find jobs and provides support for unemployment.
Other Activities
Andrea Nahles is involved in several other organizations and foundations:
- Baden-Badener Unternehmer-Gespräche (BBUG), Member of the Board of Trustees
- Central Committee of German Catholics, Member
- Hermann Kunst Foundation for the Promotion of New Testament Textual Research, Member of the Board of Trustees
- Maria Laach Abbey, Member of the Board of Trustees
- Willy Brandt Center Jerusalem, Member of the Board of Trustees
- spw – Zeitschrift für sozialistische Politik und Wirtschaft, Member of the Editorial Board
- IG Metall, Member
- Eurosolar, Member
- Attac, Member
Personal Life
Andrea Nahles has one daughter, born in January 2011. She lives in the village of Weiler, where she was born. She is a Roman Catholic and regularly attends Sunday mass. She lives on a farm that belonged to her great-grandparents. She also has an apartment in Berlin.
Nahles enjoys horse riding. She was also a track and field athlete until an accident in 1986.
See also
In Spanish: Andrea Nahles para niños
