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Hans-Gert Pöttering

Hans-Gert Pöttering
Pöttering, Hans-Gert-9757.jpg
23rd President of the European Parliament
In office
16 January 2007 – 14 July 2009
Vice President
Preceded by Josep Borrell
Succeeded by Jerzy Buzek
Leader of the European People's Party-European Democrats
In office
20 July 1999 – 16 January 2007
Preceded by Wilfried Martens
Succeeded by Joseph Daul
Member of the European Parliament
for Germany
Assumed office
17 July 1979
Chairman of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation
Assumed office
1 January 2010
Preceded by Bernhard Vogel
Personal details
Born (1945-09-15) 15 September 1945 (age 71)
Bersenbrück, Germany
Political party Christian Democratic Union
Children Johannes
Benedict
Residence Bad Iburg, Germany
Alma mater University of Bonn
University of Geneva
Graduate Institute of International Studies
Columbia University
Profession Lawyer
Religion Roman Catholicism
Website Official website

Hans-Gert Pöttering (born 15 September 1945) is a German conservative politician (CDU, European People's Party), and was the President of the European Parliament from January 2007 to July 2009. On 4 December 2009 he was elected Chairman of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation from 1 January 2010.

He has served as a Member of the European Parliament continuously since the first elections in 1979 until 2014 and was Chairman of the European People's Party-European Democrats 1999–2007.

He is a member of the Reconciliation of European Histories Group.

Pöttering never got to know his father who was killed in action during the last days of the Second World War. After Abitur and military service, he studied law, political science and history at the University of Bonn, the University of Geneva, the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva and at Columbia University in New York. He took his first state exam in jurisprudence in 1973, earned a PhD in political science and history in 1974 and took his second state exam in jurisprudence in 1976.

He has been a member of the European Parliament from 1979 until 2014, the only member of the European Parliament to have served continuously since the first elections.

From 1984 to 1994 he was chairman of the Subcommittee on Security and Defence. From 1994 to 1996 he chaired the working group on the Intergovernmental Conference of the European People's Party (EPP) and EPP-ED Group, the results of which became the official EPP position for the Treaty of Amsterdam.


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