Wolfgang Schmidt (politician)

On 6 December 2021, Schmidt was nominated as Federal Minister for Special Affairs and Head of the Chancellery in Scholz's cabinet, and was inaugurated by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on 8 December.

From 2010 to 2011, Schmidt served as director of the International Labour Organization (ILO) representative office in Germany.

Schmidt has been a close associate of Scholz since 2002 and is considered his spin doctor.

From 2002 until 2005, Schmidt worked as advisor and later as chief of staff to Olaf Scholz in his capacity as the SPD’s secretary general. He followed Scholz as chief of staff when the latter was appointed as whip of the SPD parliamentary group.

Schmidt joined the youth organization of the Social Democratic Party, called the Jusos, in 1989 due to his interest in the third world.

Wolfgang Schmidt (German pronunciation: [ˈvɔlfɡaŋ ˈʃmɪt]; born (1970-09-23)23 September 1970) is a German politician and jurist who has been serving as Federal Minister for Special Affairs, Head of the Chancellery and Commissioner for the Federal Intelligence Services since 2021. He was previously State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Finance under Minister Olaf Scholz in the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2018 to 2021.

Schmidt was born 23 September 1970, in Hamburg. He studied law at the University of Hamburg as well as the University of the Basque Country from 1991, graduating with his first state examination by 1997. Thereafter, he worked as Research associate at the University of Hamburg until 2000. Schmidt then served a two-year legal clerkship term at the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court until 2002, when he completed his second state examination.