Frank-Walter Steinmeier

**Frank-Walter Steinmeier** (born 5 January 1956) is a German politician. He was Foreign Secretary, Vice Chancellor of Germany and is currently the twelfth President of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Steinmeier was born in Detmold in 1956. After his _abitur_ (secondary school exam) and his military service, he studied law in Gießen. In 1982, he passed his first exam. His second exam was completed and passed in 1986. Between 1986 and 1991, he worked as assistant to the Doctor of Public Law and Political Science at the Gießen University. He obtained his Doctorate of Law in 1991.

After 1991, he worked in the State Chancellory of Lower Saxony for the Minister-President, Gerhard Schröder. From 1998, he was Undersecretary of State in Gerhard Schröder's Chancellor Office after Schröder became Chancellor of Germany. In 1999 he became Secretary of State.

In 2005, he became the new Foreign Minister of Germany in the coalition cabinet of Angela Merkel. He became Vice Chancellor of Germany in 2007. In 2008 he was elected to be the chancellor candidate of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) for the election in 2009. The SPD got their worst result ever in a German federal election (23.0%), and Steinmeier became leader of the SPD parliamentary group in the Bundestag.

From 2013 to 2017 he was again Foreign Minister.

Since 19 March 2017 he has been President of Germany, succeeding Joachim Gauck. He was re-elected in 2022 in a landslide victory.

## Infobox (officeholder)

- **honorific-prefix**: His Excellency
- **name**: Frank-Walter Steinmeier
- **image**: 2025-05-28 Event, Politik- Besuch des Präsidenten der Ukraine Wolodymyr Selenskyj beim deutschen Bundespräsidenten Frank-Walter Steinmeier STP 5822 (Frank-Walter Steinmeier).jpg
- **office**: President of Germany, President of the Federal Republic of Germany
- **chancellor**: Angela Merkel
Olaf Scholz
Friedrich Merz
- **term start**: 19 March 2017
- **predecessor**: Joachim Gauck
- **office1**: Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs
- **chancellor1**: Angela Merkel
- **term start1**: 17 December 2013
- **term end1**: 27 January 2017
- **predecessor1**: Guido Westerwelle
- **successor1**: Sigmar Gabriel
- **chancellor2**: Angela Merkel
- **term start2**: 22 November 2005
- **term end2**: 27 October 2009
- **predecessor2**: Joschka Fischer
- **successor2**: Guido Westerwelle
- **office3**: Vice-Chancellor of Germany, Vice Chancellor of Germany
- **chancellor3**: Angela Merkel
- **term start3**: 21 November 2007
- **term end3**: 27 October 2009
- **predecessor3**: Franz Müntefering
- **successor3**: Guido Westerwelle
- **office4**: Leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party in the Bundestag
- **1namedata4**: Thomas Oppermann
- **term start4**: 27 October 2009
- **term end4**: 16 December 2013
- **predecessor4**: Peter Struck
- **successor4**: Thomas Oppermann
- **office5**: Leader of the Social Democratic Party
<small>acting</small>
- **term start5**: 7 September 2008
- **term end5**: 18 October 2008
- **predecessor5**: Kurt Beck
- **successor5**: Franz Müntefering
- **deputy5**: Andrea Nahles
 Peer Steinbrück
 Himself
- **office6**: Deputy Leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party
- **term start6**: 26 October 2007
- **term end6**: 13 November 2009
- **predecessor6**: Bärbel Dieckmann
- **successor6**: Olaf Scholz
- **leader6**: Kurt Beck
 Himself <small>(acting)</small>
 Franz Müntefering
- **office7**: Chiefs of the Federal Chancellery, Chief of the Federal Chancellery
- **chancellor7**: Gerhard Schröder
- **term start7**: 31 July 1999
- **term end7**: 22 November 2005
- **predecessor7**: Bodo Hombach
- **successor7**: Thomas de Maizière
- **office8**: Member of the Bundestag
 for Brandenburg an der Havel – Potsdam-Mittelmark I – Havelland III – Teltow-Fläming I, Brandenburg an der Havel
- **term start8**: 27 September 2009
- **term end8**: 19 March 2017
- **predecessor8**: Margrit Spielmann
- **successor8**: Dietlind Tiemann
- **birth place**: Detmold, West Germany
- **children**: Merit Steinmeier
- **party**: Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party
- **alma mater**: Giessen University
- **signature**: Signature Frank-Walter Steinmeier.svg
- **branch**: _Bundeswehr_
- **serviceyears**: 1974-1976
- **unit**: _German Air Force, Air Force (Luftwaffe)_
- **caption**: Steinmeier in 2025