Patrick Schnieder | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Schnieder in 2025 | |
| Minister of Transport | |
| Assumed office 6 May 2025 | |
| Chancellor | Friedrich Merz |
| Preceded by | Volker Wissing(as Minister of Digital and Transport) |
| Member of the Bundestag | |
| Assumed office 27 September 2009 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1968-05-01)1 May 1968 (age 57) |
| Political party | Christian Democratic Union (since 1984) |
| Alma mater | University of Bonn |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Germany |
| Branch/service |  Bundeswehr |
| Years of service | 1987–1988 |
Patrick Schnieder (born 1 May 1968) is a German lawyer and politician of theChristian Democratic Union (CDU) who has been serving asFederal Minister for Transport in thegovernment ofChancellorFriedrich Merz since 2025.[1] He has been a member of theBundestag from the state ofRhineland-Palatinate since 2009.
From 2011 until 2018, Schnieder served as Secretary General of the CDU in Rhineland-Palatinate, under the leadership of chairwomanJulia Klöckner. During his time in office, he managed the party's campaign for the2016 state elections.
Schnieder first became a member of the Bundestag after the2009 German federal election.[2] In parliament, he was a member of the Committee on Verification of Credentials and Immunities and the Committee on Transport and Digital Infrastructure.[3][4]
In addition to his committee assignments, Schnieder has been chairing the German Parliamentary Friendship Group with Belgium and Luxembourg since 2014. He is also part of the German-Italian Parliamentary Friendship Group and the German-Japanese Parliamentary Friendship Group. Since 2019, he has been a member of the German delegation to theFranco-German Parliamentary Assembly.
Within the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, Schnieder has been leading the group of CDU parliamentarians from Rhineland-Palatinate since the2017 elections.[5] In the negotiations to form acoalition government under the leadership ofChancellorAngela Merkel following the elections, he was part of the working group on transport and infrastructure, led byMichael Kretschmer,Alexander Dobrindt andSören Bartol.
In June 2017, Schnieder voted against Germany’s introduction ofsame-sex marriage.[6]
In 2019, Schnieder joined 14 members of his parliamentary group who, in an open letter, called for the party to rally aroundAngela Merkel and party chairwomanAnnegret Kramp-Karrenbauer amid criticism voiced by conservativesFriedrich Merz andRoland Koch.[7]
