Michael Roth (politician)

Roth obtained his Abitur (higher education entrance qualification) at the Werratal secondary school in Heringen in 1990. After completing non-military national service, he began studying political science, public law, sociology, and German language and literature at the Johann Goethe University of Frankfurt am Main in 1991. He was awarded a scholarship from the Friedrich Ebert Foundation and graduated with a degree in political science in 1997.

He worked as a tutor at the Center for North American Studies and in the Faculty of Social Sciences at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main until 1998 and as a lecturer at the Otto Suhr Institute of Political Science at the Freie Universität Berlin from 2000 to 2002.

Roth joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) as a pupil in 1987. In his party he served as Deputy Federal Chairperson of the Young Socialists (youth section of the SPD) from 1993 to 1995. He was a member of the executive committee of the North Hesse district branch of the SPD from 1996 to 2015, Chairman of the Hersfeld-Rotenburg subdistrict branch of the SPD from 2001 to 2011 and Secretary-General of the Hesse Land branch of the SPD from 2009 to 2014.

Roth was a member of the Executive Committee of the Hesse Land branch of the SPD from 2015 to 2019{{Cite news|url=https://www.spd-hessen.de/gruppen/landesvorstand/|title=Landesvorstand › SPD Landesverband Hessen|access-date=2018-07-12|language=de-DE}} and a member of the Executive Committee of the SPD from 2017 to 2023.{{Cite web|url=https://www.spd.de/fileadmin/Dokumente/Bundesparteitag_2017/Ordentlicher_BPT/Wahlergebnisse_Parteivorstand_2017.pdf|title=SPD Executive Committee|access-date=12 July 2018|archive-date=13 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171213201014/https://www.spd.de/fileadmin/Dokumente/Bundesparteitag_2017/Ordentlicher_BPT/Wahlergebnisse_Parteivorstand_2017.pdf|url-status=dead}}

On 2 July 2019, Roth announced that he would be standing for election as SPD Chairperson in tandem with fellow party member Christina Kampmann.{{Cite news|url=https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/bewerbung-als-doppelspitze-michael-roth-und-christina-kampmann-kandidieren-fuer-spd-vorsitz/24518316.html|title=Michael Roth und Christina Kampmann kandidieren für SPD-Vorsitz|newspaper=Der Tagesspiegel Online|date=2 July 2019|language=de|access-date=2020-02-03}} Campaigning under the slogan "With heart and steadfastness. Working together to launch a fresh start." they called for, among other things, an end to the balanced budget policy, more gender equality, a fundamental reform of the party, security in the digital transformation and the United States of Europe.{{Cite web|url=https://www.herz-und-haltung.de/themen/|title=Themen|last=Admin|website=Christina Kampmann und Michael Roth / Mit Herz und Haltung.|language=de-DE|access-date=2020-02-03}} The Kampmann/Roth duo received 16.3 percent of members' votes in the first round. They came in third and therefore did not qualify for the second-round run-off.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/spd-vorsitz-mitgliederbefragung-ergebnis-scholz-geyweitz-esken-walter-borjans-1.4657230|title=SPD: Scholz und Geywitz müssen in Stichwahl|last=Zeitung|first=Süddeutsche|website=Süddeutsche.de|date=26 October 2019 |language=de|access-date=2020-02-03}}

Roth became a member of the German Bundestag for the first time in 1998, entering as the directly elected representative of the Hersfeld constituency with 51.7 percent of the first vote. In 2002 he was re-elected to the Bundestag with 54.9 percent of the first vote of the newly merged constituency of Werra-Meißner – Hersfeld-Rotenburg. In subsequent elections he received 51.7 percent (2005), 40.4 percent (2009), 43.1 (2013){{Cite web|url=http://www.statistik-hessen.de/b_2013/S1691.htm|title=Bundestagswahl 2013 in Hessen|website=www.statistik-hessen.de|access-date=2018-07-13}} and 41.2 (2017){{Cite web|url=https://www.bundeswahlleiter.de/bundestagswahlen/2017/ergebnisse/bund-99/land-6/wahlkreis-169.html|title=Ergebnisse Werra-Meißner – Hersfeld-Rotenburg - Der Bundeswahlleiter|last=Bundeswahlleiter|first=Der|website=www.bundeswahlleiter.de|language=de|access-date=2018-07-13}} of the first vote.

From the beginning of his parliamentary work, Roth served on the Committee on the Affairs of the European Union. From 2010 to 2013, Roth served as spokesperson on European policy for the SPD parliamentary group in the Bundestag.

From 2009 to 2014 and again from 2017 to 2018, Roth chaired the group of SPD parliamentarians from Hesse in the Bundestag. He also belongs to the Parliamentary Left, a left-wing movement within the group.[http://www.parlamentarische-linke.de/unsere-mitglieder/ Members] Parlamentarische Linke.

Roth was elected as lead candidate for the Social Democrats in Hesse for the 2013 elections on 9 March 2013 at a SPD party conference in Hanau, where he gained 89 percent of the votes. In the ensuing negotiations to form a coalition government he was a member of the joint CDU, CSU and SPD working group on foreign affairs, defence and development cooperation, led by Thomas de Maizière and Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

For the 2017 elections, 95 percent of the delegates at the SPD regional conference in Kassel voted to make him lead candidate for Hesse.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hna.de/kassel/michael-roth-ist-spitzenkandidat-fuer-spd-in-hessen-8202322.html|title=Michael Roth geht als Spitzenkandidat für Hessen-SPD ins Rennen|date=2017-04-22|website=hna.de|language=de|access-date=2020-02-03}} During the coalition negotiations between the CDU, CSU and SPD, he chaired the working group on the arts, culture, creative industries and the media and was a member of the working group on Europe.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hna.de/lokales/rotenburg-bebra/michael-roth-redet-mit-bei-koalitionsverhandlungen-9560637.html|title=Michael Roth redet mit bei den Koalitionsverhandlungen|date=2018-01-26|website=hna.de|language=de|access-date=2020-02-03}} For the 2021 elections, he was elected to lead the SPD campaign in Hesse again.Robert Maus (June 19, 2021), [https://www.faz.net/aktuell/rhein-main/michael-roth-fuehrt-hessische-spd-in-den-wahlkampf-17397765.html Parteitag der SPD Hessen: Roth führt Genossen in den Bundestagswahlkampf] Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

File:FM Meets German Minister of Europe.jpg, First Minister of Scotland.]]

On 17 December 2013, Roth was appointed Minister of State for Europe at the German Federal Foreign Office, first in the third Merkel Cabinet. From January 2014 he was also the Commissioner for Franco-German Cooperation.

As Minister of State for Europe, Roth was the deputy to the Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs. In this function he served under three Federal Ministers for Foreign Affairs Frank-Walter Steinmeier (2013–2017), Sigmar Gabriel (2017–2018) and Heiko Maas (2018–2021). He was responsible for all EU matters, Eastern Europe, the Western Balkan countries, Russia, Turkey, human rights issues, the interfaith dialogue, Jewish life as well as international LGBTI and Roma issues.

As chairman of the State Secretaries Committee for European Affairs, Roth participated in the Federal Government's Cabinet meetings. He also represents the Federal Government on the EU’s General Affairs Council.

In April 2017, Roth was elected chairman of the Party of European Socialists’ GAC Ministers network, succeeding Harlem Désir.[https://www.pes.eu/oc/en/news-events/news/detail/Progressive-European-ministers-call-for-a-Europe-with-strong-social-rights/ Progressive European ministers call for a Europe with strong social rights] Party of European Socialists, press release of 27 April 2017.

In the negotiations to form a so-called traffic light coalition of the SPD, the Green Party and the Free Democratic Party (FDP) following the 2021 federal elections, Roth was part of his party's delegation in the working group on European affairs, co-chaired by Udo Bullmann, Franziska Brantner and Nicola Beer.[https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/ampel-koalition-das-sind-die-verhandlungsteams-von-spd.1939.de.html Ampel-Koalition: Das sind die Verhandlungsteams von SPD, Grünen und FDP]{{Dead link|date=June 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Deutschlandfunk, October 27, 2021.

Since 2021, Roth has been chairing the Committee on Foreign Affairs, succeeding Norbert Röttgen.[https://www.bundestag.de/abgeordnete/biografien/R/roth_michael-857922 Michael Roth] Bundestag. In this capacity, he visited Ukraine shortly after the 2022 Russian invasion with Anton Hofreiter and Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, the chairs of parliament's European affairs and defense committees respectively.Paul Carrel (14 April 2022), [https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/strains-german-coalition-junior-partners-turn-scholz-over-ukraine-2022-04-14/ Strains in German coalition as junior partners turn on Scholz over Ukraine] Reuters.

In March 2024, Roth announced that he would not stand in the 2025 federal elections but instead resign from active politics by the end of the parliamentary term.Anna Lehmann (26 March 2024), [https://taz.de/Abschied-aus-der-Politik/!6000830/ Abschied aus der Politik: Roth macht Schluss] Die Tageszeitung.

In May 2024, as response to protests in Georgia he visited Tbilisi and arrived to the rally held on Rustaveli avenue. His statements rapidly became a target of critics by Government officials and Orthodox Church of Georgia.[https://1tv.ge/lang/en/news/speaker-weve-heard-michael-roths-attacking-goc-we-dont-want-to-equate-such-politicians-with-europe/ Speaker: We've heard Michael Roth's attacking GOC, we don't want to equate such politicians with Europe Speaker: We've heard Michael Roth's attacking GOC, we don't want to equate such politicians with Europe][https://www.radiotavisupleba.ge/a/32948852.html საპატრიარქომ მიხაელ როთის განცხადებას „ეკლესიის სტიგმატიზაციის სამწუხარო მცდელობა“ უწოდა] Roth returned to Tbilisi in November 2024, along with MPs from seven other EU member states, to criticize alleged irregularities in the Georgian parliamentary election and express solidarity with Georgian citizens who support integration with the EU.{{cite news |title=EU lawmakers attend Tbilisi rally amid election dispute |url=https://jam-news.net/eu-lawmakers-attend-tbilisi-rally-amid-election-dispute/ |work=JAMnews |date=12 November 2024}}{{cite news |last1=Gavin |first1=Gabriel |title=Georgian government blasts European delegation amid call for election investigation |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/georgia-government-blasts-european-delegation-amid-call-for-election-investigation/ |work=POLITICO |date=11 November 2024}} The members of the delegation spoke at a rally in front of the parliament building and had a meeting with president Salome Zourabichvili.{{cite news |title=Georgian President meets EU delegation as political crisis deepens |url=https://jam-news.net/georgian-president-meets-eu-delegation-as-political-crisis-deepens/ |work=JAMnews |date=11 November 2024}}

In November 2024, following the Lithuanian parliamentary election, Roth criticized the decision of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party to invite the nationalist Dawn of Nemunas party into the ruling coalition.{{cite news |title=Lithuania government to include party whose leader is on trial for antisemitism |url=https://www.jpost.com/international/article-828289 |work=The Jerusalem Post |date=9 November 2024 |language=en}}{{cite news |title=Bundestago narys sako, kad LSDP draugystė su Žemaitaičiu kenksminga: esame susirūpinę |url=https://www.lrt.lt/naujienos/lietuvoje/2/2409674/bundestago-narys-sako-kad-lsdp-draugyste-su-zemaitaiciu-kenksminga-esame-susirupine |work=lrt.lt |date=9 November 2024 |language=lt}} The latter party's founder, Remigijus Žemaitaitis, is known for his antisemitic remarks.

On the sidelines of an informal U.N. General Assembly meeting on the rising threat of antisemitism in January 2015, Roth joined his French counterpart Harlem Désir in appealing for U.N. member states to work together on an international legal framework that would make social network providers share responsibility for the use of their platforms to spread messages promoting violence; the French call for a radical shift in the way governments treat social networking companies such as Facebook and Twitter came two weeks after the Charlie Hebdo shooting in Paris.Louis Charbonneau (January 22, 2015), [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-security-internet-idUSKBN0KV2EK20150122 Social networks must help stamp out promotion of violence: France] Reuters.

Amid the Greek government-debt crisis, Roth visited Greece six times within his first year in office.[http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/EN/Aussenpolitik/Laender/Aktuelle_Artikel/Griechenland/141024_StMR_Thessaloniki.html?nn=606838 Remembering the past and shaping the future together – Minister of State Roth visits Thessaloniki] Federal Foreign Office, press release of 30 October 2014. On the occasion of the first visit to the country by a German minister after Greeks elected the radical left-wing government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in early 2015, Roth publicly warned the new government of risking its isolation in the European Union by threatening to break ranks on the EU sanctions against Russia over the Russo-Ukrainian war and ditch its bailout deal.Birgit Jennen, Rainer Buergin and Arne Delfs (January 30, 2015), [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-01-30/germany-warns-greece-heading-wrong-way-as-tsipras-shunned Germany Warns Greece Against Isolation as Tsipras Shunned] Bloomberg News. He also urged Greece to end its prolonged spat with the European Central Bank, saying ECB President Mario Draghi is an ally in the country's struggle for funding and that both Europe and the Greek government need to avoid letting the standoff drift to a point of a Greek exit by accident.Patrick Donahue and Birgit Jennen (April 2, 2015), [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-04-02/germany-urges-greece-to-win-over-ecb-in-quest-for-funding Germany Urges Greece to Win Over ECB in Quest for Funding] Bloomberg News. He has repeatedly pointed out that keeping Greece in the euro "is the focus of all of our efforts, though it’s up to the Greek government first and foremost to do its part".Jonathan Stearns, Birgit Jennen and Corina Ruhe (March 23, 2015), [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-23/merkel-welcomes-tsipras-saying-she-wants-greek-success Merkel Points Tsipras Toward Deal With Greece’s Creditors] Bloomberg News.

• Center for International Peace Operations (ZIF), Chairman of the Supervisory Board (2013–2021){{Cite web|url=http://www.zif-berlin.org/de/ueber-zif/nachrichten-aus-dem-zif/detailansicht/browse/1/article/zif-aufsichtsrat-benannt-staatsminister-michael-roth-neuer-vorsitzender.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=544&cHash=d8bb73b016f3e63b8bde86c4c08865e3|title=ZIF-Aufsichtsrat benannt: Staatsminister Michael Roth neuer Vorsitzender {{!}} Nachrichten aus dem ZIF {{!}} Über ZIF {{!}} Seite 2 {{!}} ZIF - Zentrum für Internationale Friedenseinsätze|last=Friedenseinsätze|first=Zentrum für Internationale|website=www.zif-berlin.org|language=de|access-date=2018-07-12|archive-date=22 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222051439/http://www.zif-berlin.org/de/ueber-zif/nachrichten-aus-dem-zif/detailansicht/browse/1/article/zif-aufsichtsrat-benannt-staatsminister-michael-roth-neuer-vorsitzender.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=544&cHash=d8bb73b016f3e63b8bde86c4c08865e3|url-status=dead}}
• Franco-German Institute Ludwigsburg (dfi), Member of the Executive Committee (2013–2021){{Cite web|url=https://www.dfi.de/de/DFI/ueber_vorstand.shtml|title=dfi – Deutsch–Französisches Institut|last=Institut|first=dfi – Deutsch–Französisches|website=www.dfi.de|language=de|access-date=2018-07-12}}
• German Foundation for Peace Research (DSF), Member of the Board of Trustees (2013–2021){{Cite news|url=https://bundesstiftung-friedensforschung.de/stiftungsrat/|title=Stiftungsrat - Deutsche Stiftung Friedensforschung|work=Deutsche Stiftung Friedensforschung|access-date=2018-07-12|language=de-DE}}
• Institute for European Politics (IEP), Member of the Board of Trustees{{Cite web|url=http://iep-berlin.de/blog/team/filter/versammlung-der-kuratoren/|title=Versammlung der Kuratoren Archive - Institut für Europäische Politik IEP Institut für Europäische Politik IEP|website=iep-berlin.de|language=de-DE|access-date=2018-07-12}}
• International Journalists’ Programmes (IJP), Member of the Board of Trustees[http://www.ijp.org/en/organisation/deutsches-kuratorium/ Board of Trustees (2019-2022)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161003175637/http://www.ijp.org/en/organisation/deutsches-kuratorium/ |date=3 October 2016 }} International Journalists’ Programmes (IJP).
• Foundation Flight, Expulsion, Reconciliation (SFVV), Member of the Board of Trustees{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfvv.de/de/stiftung/stiftungsrat|title=Stiftungsrat {{!}} Stiftung Flucht, Vertreibung, Versöhnung|website=www.sfvv.de|language=de|access-date=2018-07-12}}
• Foundation Adam von Trott, Imshausen e.V., Member of the Advisory Council{{Cite web|url=http://www.stiftung-adam-von-trott.de/der-Verein/gremien-stiftung-adam-von-trott.php|title=Stiftung Adam von Trott {{!}} Imshausen e.V.|last=www.menecum.de|first=Menecum {{!}} Frankfurt {{!}}|website=www.stiftung-adam-von-trott.de|language=de|access-date=2018-07-13|archive-date=8 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190208010656/http://stiftung-adam-von-trott.de/der-Verein/gremien-stiftung-adam-von-trott.php|url-status=dead}}

• Evangelical Church of Hesse Electorate-Waldeck (EKKW), Member of the Synod{{Cite web|url=https://www.ekkw.de/unsere_kirche/24804.htm|title=Evangelische Kirche von Kurhessen-Waldeck {{!}} Mitglieder|last=Kurhessen-Waldeck|first=Medienhaus der Ev. von|website=www.ekkw.de|language=de|access-date=2018-07-12}}
• Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), Member of the Chamber for Public Responsibility{{Cite web|url=https://www.ekd.de/Kammer-fuer-Offentliche-Verantwortung-14794.htm|title=Kammer für Öffentliche Verantwortung|website=www.ekd.de|language=de|access-date=2018-07-12}}

In 2020, Roth criticised Hungary and Poland for an erosion of democratic culture and also said one aspect that “led to the Article 7 case against Hungary was rampant anti-semitism in Hungary”; in response, Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Péter Szijjártó summoned the German ambassador to a meeting to explain the remarks.Krisztina Than (August 23, 2020), [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hungary-germany-diplomacy-idUSKBN25J0PQ Hungary summons German ambassador over EU minister's anti-Semitism criticism] Reuters.

{{reflist|3}}

• [https://www.bundestag.de/abgeordnete/biografien/R/roth_michael/523042 Profile on the Bundestag homepage]
• [http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/DE/AAmt/Leitung/StMRoth_node.html Profile on the Federal Foreign Office homepage]
• [https://www.michaelroth.eu/ Personal Homepage]
• {{Facebook|michael.rothmdb}}

{{Commons category|Michael Roth (Politiker)|Michael Roth}}

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