President of the German Bundesrat
In Germany, the president of the Bundesrat or president of the Federal Council (German: "Bundesratspräsident") is the chairperson or speaker of the Bundesrat (Federal Council). He or she is elected by the Bundesrat for a term of one year (usually from November 1 to October 31 in the next year). Traditionally, the presidency of the Bundesrat rotates among the leaders of the sixteen state governments. This is however only an established practice; theoretically the Bundesrat is free to elect any member it chooses, and a president could also be re-elected (which has happened once , in 1957). As well as acting as a chairperson, the president of the Bundesrat is "ex officio" deputy of the president of Germany. The President of the German Bundesrat is 4th in the German order of precedence. In addition, the main celebration of German Unity Day is traditionally held in the state that holds the presidency. The president of the Bundesrat convenes and chairs plenary sessions of the body and is formally responsible for representing the Federal Republic in the Bundesrat. He or she is aided by two vice presidents who play an advisory role and deputise in the president 's absence. The three together constitute the presidium of the Bundesrat. The current president of the Bundesrat is Bodo Ramelow, the Minister President of Thuringia, whose one-year term started on 1 November 2021. Election. The Basic Law provides that "the Bundesrat elects its President for one year" (Art. 52.1). In order to be elected, a nominee needs a majority of votes in the Bundesrat (currently 35 of 69). In practice the position rotates among the states equally, following a constitutional convention known as the “Königstein agreement” ("Königsteiner Vereinbarung"). The position rotates from one state to another in an order  determined by population, the presidency descending from the most populous state to the least. The order is updated based on the newest census-data everytime a rotation has been completed. The "Königsstein agreement" also states that, if the sitting President of the Bundesrat exits his office as Minister President of his or her state (for example, if they loses a state election, dies or resigns from his office) the new Minister President of that state is elected President of the Bundesrat subsequently, but only to complete his or her predecessors term; the last time this occurred was in April 1999 , when Hans Eichel, President of the Bundesrat and Minister President of Hesse, had lost the 1999 Hesse state election and his successor Roland Koch served the end of his term until October 1999. The current order of rotation of the presidency of the Bundesrat is as follows: Deputy to the Federal President. Article 57 of the Basic Law provides that: If the office of the Federal President falls vacant, the President of the Bundesrat fills in as acting head of state. If the president resigns, dies, or is removed from office, a successor is elected within thirty days. Three Presidents  of the Bundesrat have served as acting head of state: If the Federal President is abroad on a state visit the President of the Bundesrat does not assume all of the Federal President's responsibilities but may "deputise" for him or her, performing on the Federal President's behalf merely those tasks that require his or her physical presence, such as the signing of documents.