Overview
- Hubert Aiwanger was found dead in a Berlin hotel room on 4 November and the Berlin public prosecutor said after an autopsy there were no indications of a criminal act.
- A Pontifikalrequiem began at 10:30 CET on Saturday 14 November in Munich’s Frauenkirche and a Trauerstaatsakt followed at noon with live coverage by Bayerischer Rundfunk.
- More than 1,000 people attended the services in and around the cathedral, where Cardinal Reinhard Marx presided and speakers included Markus Söder, Ilse Aigner and Florian Streibl.
- Administrative moves have already taken place: Stephan Weckmann accepted the vacant Landtag mandate, Staatssekretär Tobias Gotthardt is acting in ministerial duties, and the Freie Wähler postponed permanent leadership and cabinet appointments until after a private burial in Niederbayern.
- Aiwanger’s death is unusual for Bavaria because sitting ministers rarely die in office, and the party’s delayed decisions mean a short timetable for choosing successors with a possible ministerial swearing-in around Tuesday, 24 November.