Introduction
Eva Alexandra Ingrid Irmgard Anna Högl (née Kampmeyer, born 6 January 1969) is a German politician of the SPD party and member of the Bundestag, the German parliament. Högl has been a member of her party since 1987. She has been deputy chairwoman of the SPD parliamentary group since 2013.
Early career
Högl was born in Osnabrück. From 1999 until 2009, she worked at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS) in Berlin. At the ministry, she was head of the unit in charge of European labor and social policy between 2006 and 2009.
Political career
Career in state politics
Since 2007, Högl has been a member of the executive board of the SPD in Berlin, under the leadership of party chairman Michael Müller. Before the 2008 elections in Lower Saxony, candidate Wolfgang Jüttner included Högl in his shadow cabinet for the Social Democrats’ – unsuccessful – campaign to unseat incumbent Minister-President Christian Wulff. During the campaign, she served as shadow minister for regional development and European affairs.
Member of Parliament, 2009–present
Högl has been a member of the German Bundestag since 2009, representing the constituency of Berlin Mitte. In her first full legislative term from 2009 until 2013, she was a member of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Committee on European Affairs. On the latter committee, she was her parliamentary group's rapporteur on the 2010 European Union directive on the rights to interpretation and to translation in criminal proceedings. In addition to her committee assignments, she served as deputy chairwoman of the German-Dutch Parliamentary Friendship Group from 2010 until 2013. Within the SPD parliamentary group, she was a member of the working group on municipal policy from 2009 until 2017.
In the negotiations to form a Grand Coalition of Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU together with the Bavarian CSU) and the SPD following the 2013 federal elections, Högl was part of the SPD delegation in the working group on families, women and equality, led by Annette Widmann-Mauz and Manuela Schwesig.
Since December 2013, Högl has been serving as deputy chairwoman of the SPD parliamentary group under the leadership of successive chairpersons Thomas Oppermann (2013-2017), Andrea Nahles (2017-2019) and Rolf Mützenich (since 2019). In addition, she was appointed to the Committee on the Election of Judges (Wahlausschuss), which is in charge of appointing judges to the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany. She also serves on the parliamentary body in charge of appointing judges to the Highest Courts of Justice, namely the Federal Court of Justice (BGH), the Federal Administrative Court (BVerwG), the Federal Fiscal Court (BFH), the Federal Labour Court (BAG), and the Federal Social Court (BSG). In 2019, she joined the Parliamentary Oversight Panel (PKGr), which provides parliamentary oversight of Germany's intelligence services BND, BfV and MAD.
In the negotiations to form a fourth coalition government under Merkel following the 2017 federal elections, Högl was part of the working group on migration and integration, led by Volker Bouffier, Joachim Herrmann and Ralf Stegner.
Other activities
Corporate boards
- Berliner Stadtreinigung (BSR), Member of the Advisory Board
Non-profit organizations
- Psychologische Hochschule Berlin (PHB), Member of the Board of Trustees
- German-Arab Friendship Association (DAFG), Member of the Advisory Board
- Europäische Akademie für Frauen in Politik und Wirtschaft Berlin, Member of the Board of Trustees
- Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES), Member
- Conciliation Board of the Federal Bar Association, Member of the Advisory Board
- Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe Foundation, Member of the Board of Trustees
- Willy Brandt Center Jerusalem, Member
- German Foundation for International Legal Cooperation (IRZ), Member (since 2014)
- Gegen Vergessen – Für Demokratie, Member
- Europa-Union Deutschland, Member
- German United Services Trade Union (ver.di), Member
- Pro Asyl, Member
- Transparency International, Member
Political positions
Högl has been a vocal proponent of banning the extreme rightwing National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD), arguing that a ban would “hit the party as an organisation and also stop it being financed by taxpayers”.
Högl has also demanded improved voting rights for foreigners living in Germany.
Personal life
Högl is married to an architect. The couple resides in Berlin’s Wedding district, in the same building as Peer Steinbrück.
Sources
- ^ SPD-Fraktionsvize Högl will Wahlrecht für Ausländer erweitern, Frankfurter Allgemeine
- ^ Ulrich Zawatka-Gerlach (February 8, 2019), Neue SPD-Ministerin? Eva Högl hat es wohl geschafft Der Tagesspiegel.
- ^ Schattenkabinette Die Tageszeitung, January 30, 2008.
- ^ Ulrich Zawatka-Gerlach (February 8, 2019), Neue SPD-Ministerin? Eva Högl hat es wohl geschafft Der Tagesspiegel.
- ^ Ulrich Zawatka-Gerlach (February 8, 2019), Neue SPD-Ministerin? Eva Högl hat es wohl geschafft Der Tagesspiegel.
- ^ SPD-Politikerin Högl neu im Parlamentarischen Kontrollgremium Die Zeit, November 7, 2019.
- ^ Joachim Fahrun (January 15, 2018), Michael Müller verhandelt über große Koalition mit Berliner Morgenpost.
- ^ Melanie Amann, Veit Medick, Ralf Neukirch and René Pfister (January 19, 2018), Distrust and Anger: Inside Germany's Rocky Coalition Talks Spiegel Online.
- ^ Advisory Board Berliner Stadtreinigung (BSR).
- ^ Advisory Board German-Arab Friendship Association (DAFG).
- ^ Board of Trustees Europäische Akademie für Frauen in Politik und Wirtschaft Berlin.
- ^ Members Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES).
- ^ Guy Chazan (January 17, 2017), Germany’s top court blocks ban on far-right NPD Financial Times.
- ^ Ulrike Ruppel (July 21, 2013), Wie ist Peer Steinbrück als Nachbar, Frau Högl? B.Z..