Wolfgang Kubicki, the deputy chairman of the FDP, stated that his primary goal is to restore the party to double-digit electoral support. He noted that the party achieved this twice before-in 2017 with 10.7 percent and in 2021 with 11.4 percent-and considers aiming for anything less than that to be “quite underambitious”. Kubicki previously announced that he intended to run for the party chairmanship in May.
Addressing questions about how his stance has changed since admitting in February 2025 that he was unsure if he represented the party’s future, Kubicki responded that he increasingly recognized that the FDP, like any political entity, needs a future. He was deeply disturbed by the fact that the party was currently not represented in the Bundestag and had fallen below the threshold of public awareness. Given his long history-56 years-within the party, he could not simply stand by while it declined.
When questioned about what would differentiate a Kubicki-led FDP from a party led by Christian Lindner, Kubicki argued that neither scenario was definitive. He dismissed the notion that having a leader alone would succeed, asserting that the FDP possesses a political offering that is highly relevant in the current climate. He argued that while all parties promise to maintain prosperity, their actual policies tend to destroy it, and that the Free Democrats are uniquely positioned to address this. He concluded that the party merely needed a face capable of conveying this message.
Regarding the nation’s pressing issues, Kubicki highlighted the loss of economic prosperity as the most urgent concern. He pointed to the loss of between 120,000 and 150,000 industrial jobs annually, the highest rate of insolvency in a long time, continuous tax increases, and the danger of classifying special funds and saving measures as simply additional debt.
Kubicki also offered sharp critiques of other major political figures. Of Federal Minister for Economics and Climate Action Ferdinand Merz (CDU), he claimed to have known him for a long time and initially believed in him, but now felt that Merz’s actions were merely a façade. While admitting that Merz delivers excellent speeches to associations, Kubicki stated that the practical politics executed the following day were often the absolute opposite. Meanwhile, he dismissed Lars Klingbeil (SPD), the Federal Minister of Finance, as lacking financial policymaking experience, criticizing him for attempting to establish himself as the foremost finance minister when he has done nothing but make a few sensible suggestions, such as pension funding through capital reserves.
In defense of the party against the Alternative for Germany (AfD), Kubicki stated that he only knows about “brand walls” in actual buildings and that no such constitutional or legal initiative exists. He characterized the call for a brand wall as a fabricated effort to entirely exclude the AfD, claiming he supported clear demarcation, not outright exclusion. He suggested that such a measure would benefit the AfD more than it would harm them.
Finally, when asked about the timing of the next federal election and the FDP’s outcome, Kubicki speculated that the CDU and SPD would be forced to stay together, regardless of events. He anticipated that the coalition of political maneuvering would last a while, and that internal tensions within the SPD and CDU might eventually become so great that their continued cooperation becomes impossible.