Katharina Dröge

Katharina Dröge is a German politician serving as co-leader of Alliance 90/The Greens alongside Omid Nouripour since 2022, following the leadership of Annalena Baerbock and Robert Habeck. A member of the Bundestag since 2013, she represents the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and has held significant roles in her parliamentary group, including spokesperson for economic policy. Dröge is known for her advocacy of a social-ecological market economy, digital sovereignty, and strengthening European industrial policy.

Early life and education

Katharina Dröge was born in 1984 in Bonn, then the capital of West Germany. She completed her secondary education in her hometown before moving to Cologne to pursue higher studies. At the University of Cologne, she studied political science, economics, and public law, graduating with a degree in political science. Her academic focus on economic structures and political systems laid a foundation for her later parliamentary work on industrial and competition policy.

Political career

Dröge joined Alliance 90/The Greens in 2005, becoming active in the party's youth organization, Green Youth. She was first elected to the Bundestag in the 2013 German federal election, entering parliament as a list candidate for North Rhine-Westphalia. Within the Green parliamentary group, she quickly rose to prominence, serving as deputy chair from 2017 to 2021 under the leadership of Katrin Göring-Eckardt and Anton Hofreiter. Following the 2021 German federal election, which resulted in the traffic light coalition between the SPD, Greens, and FDP, Dröge was elected co-leader of the national party in January 2022. In this role, she succeeded Annalena Baerbock and Robert Habeck, who joined the Scholz cabinet as Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor and Economics Minister, respectively.

Policy positions

A central figure in her party's economic policy, Dröge advocates for a transformative industrial policy aligned with climate goals. She has been a vocal proponent of the European Green Deal and supports robust European Union competition law to ensure fair markets. Her work emphasizes strengthening small and medium-sized enterprises, promoting a circular economy, and securing digital sovereignty for Europe against the dominance of large U.S. and Chinese tech firms. In the Bundestag Committee on Economic Affairs and Energy, she has pushed for reforms to the Renewable Energy Sources Act and greater public investment in green technologies like green hydrogen. Dröge also supports deepening European integration, particularly in areas of common fiscal policy and a coordinated asylum system.

Personal life

Katharina Dröge lives in Cologne with her family. She is known to be a passionate supporter of 1. FC Köln, the city's major football club. Outside of politics, her interests include literature and hiking in the Bergisches Land region. She maintains a relatively private personal life, focusing public communication on her political work and policy objectives.

See also

* Politics of Germany * Bundestag * Traffic light coalition (Germany) * European Green Deal

Category:1984 births Category:Alliance 90/The Greens politicians Category:Members of the Bundestag Category:People from Bonn Category:University of Cologne alumni Category:Living people