Stefanie Hubig (; born 15 December 1968) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who has been serving as Federal Minister of Justice in the government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz since 2025. From 2016 to 2025, she served as State Minister for Education in the government of Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate Malu Dreyer.Timo Frasch (11 May 2016), Ampel in Rheinland-Pfalz: Neue Minister für Dreyers Kabinett Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
Early life and education Hubig was born 1968 in the West German city of Frankfurt am Main and graduated from highschool in Munich. She studied law at the University of Regensburg, graduating in 1993.Schwäbische Zeitung 19.05.2021 p. 3 (in German) Hubig worked as a judge and state attorney before entering politics.
Political career Career in national politics Following the 2013 national elections, Hubig was appointed State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection under minister Heiko Maas, in the coalition government led by Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Career in state politics Following the 2016 state elections, Hubig was appointed State Minister of Education in Rhineland-Palatinate. In this capacity, she has also been also one of the state’s representatives on the Bundesrat,Stefanie Hubig Bundesrat. where she serves on the Committee on Cultural Affairsand the Committee on Women and Youth. She also chaired the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs in 2020.Katrin Bennhold (26 August 2020), Schools Can Reopen, Germany Finds, but Expect a ‘Roller Coaster’ New York Times.
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 German elections, Hubig was part of her party's delegation in the working group on education policy, co-chaired by Andreas Stoch, Felix Banaszak and Jens Brandenburg.Britt-Marie Lakämper (October 21, 2021), SPD, Grüne, FDP: Diese Politiker verhandeln die Ampel-Koalition Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung. Amid the formation of the cabinet of Chancellor Olaf Scholz, she was mentioned by numerous news outlets as a potential candidate for a cabinet post;Kristina Dunz, Tobias Peter and Eva Quadbeck (27 September 2021), Ob SPD, Union, Grüne oder FDP – wer jetzt auf ein Ministeramt hofft RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland.Nikolaus Doll, Claus Christian Malzahn and Thorsten Jungholt (21 November 2021), Ampel-Verhandlungen: Wer wird was im Kabinett von Olaf Scholz? Die Welt.Georg Link (5 December 2021), Künftige Minister im Bundeskabinett: Wen beruft Olaf Scholz aus der rheinland-pfälzischen SPD? Südwestrundfunk. however, she remained in her role in Rhineland-Palatinate.
Upon her appointment as the federal minister of justice, Hubig was succeeded by Sven Teuber on 14 May 2025.
Minister of Justice, 2025–present In the negotiations to form a Grand Coalition under the leadership of Friedrich Merz's Christian Democrats (CDU together with the Bavarian CSU) and the SPD following the 2025 German elections, Hubig was again part of the SPD delegation in the working group on education, research and innovation, this time led by Karin Prien, Katrin Staffler and Oliver Kaczmarek.Koalitionsverhandlungen von Union und SPD: Diese Rheinland-Pfälzer sind dabei Südwestrundfunk, 13 March 2025. Upon the formation of the Merz cabinet, she was appointed Minister of Justice and Consumer Protection.
Other activities Stiftung Lesen, Member of the Board of TrusteesBoard of Trustees Stiftung Lesen.
References