Jens Spahn falls to last place in German politician ranking after surrogacy controversy; Weidel rises to 4th

For the first time since the debate over Jens Spahn's surrogacy arrangement, the Insa institute has measured the popularity of German politicians. The former Union parliamentary group leader has dropped to last place, while AfD leader Alice Weidel and FDP leader Wolfgang Kubicki have gained ground.

Spahn's Decline in the Rankings

The resigned Union parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn (CDU) has slipped to 20th place in the Insa politician ranking for Bild, losing one position. According to the newspaper, Spahn is the only politician in the survey who lost not only ranking positions but also points.

Spahn and his husband Daniel Funke announced the birth of their son Georg last Wednesday, who was carried by a surrogate mother in the USA. The announcement drew harsh criticism. Among other things, Spahn was accused of double standards, having previously spoken out against the possibility of surrogacy in Germany. On Saturday, Spahn announced his resignation as Union parliamentary group leader.

Public Opinion on Spahn and Surrogacy

Survey participants were explicitly asked about their opinion of Jens Spahn. The results show:

• 69% consider him untrustworthy.
• 68% stated that fatherhood with the help of a surrogate mother harms the CDU.

Opinions on surrogacy itself were divided:

• 39% said they find the ban on surrogacy in Germany correct.
• 41% said they consider the ban to be wrong.

Weidel and Kubicki Gain Ground

At the top of the politician ranking, the order remains unchanged:

1. Boris Pistorius (SPD) – 4.9 points
2. Cem Özdemir (Greens) – 4.3 points
3. Hendrik Wüst (CDU) – 4.0 points

AfD leader Alice Weidel improved to 4th place, while FDP leader Wolfgang Kubicki gained two places and now sits in 7th position.

Full Insa Politician Ranking

| Rank | Politician | Party | Points | |------|------------|-------|--------| | 1 | Boris Pistorius | SPD | 4.9 | | 2 | Cem Özdemir | Greens | 4.3 | | 3 | Hendrik Wüst | CDU | 4.0 | | 4 | Alice Weidel | AfD | 3.9 | | 5 | Markus Söder | CSU | 3.9 | | 6 | Alexander Dobrindt | CSU | 3.8 | | 7 | Wolfgang Kubicki | FDP | 3.8 | | 8 | Julia Klöckner | CDU | 3.7 | | 9 | Sahra Wagenknecht | BSW | 3.7 | | 10 | Heidi Reichinnek | Left | 3.6 | | 11 | Lars Klingbeil | SPD | 3.6 | | 12 | Carsten Linnemann | CDU | 3.6 | | 13 | Katharine Dröge | Greens | 3.5 | | 14 | Ines Schwerdtner | Left | 3.5 | | 15 | Tino Chrupalla | AfD | 3.5 | | 16 | Franziska Brantner | Greens | 3.5 | | 17 | Bärbel Bas | SPD | 3.3 | | 18 | Katherina Reiche | CDU | 3.2 | | 19 | Friedrich Merz | CDU | 2.7 | | 20 | Jens Spahn | CDU | 2.5 |

Insa surveyed 1,004 people from July 17 to 20. The maximum error tolerance is plus/minus 3.1 percentage points.