David McAllister

David James McAllister, born on 12 January 1971, is a German politician. He has been a member of the European Parliament since 2014 and belongs to the Christian Democratic Union, which is part of the European People's Party. He currently serves as the vice president of the European People's Party and is also the vice chairman of the International Democrat Union. In February 2017, he became the Chair of the European Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee.

Before his role in the European Parliament, McAllister was elected Minister-President of the state of Lower Saxony on 1 July 2010. He took this position after Christian Wulff resigned to become the President of Germany. McAllister led a coalition government with the liberal FDP until he was defeated in elections on 19 February 2013.

By profession, McAllister is a lawyer. He was chairman of the CDU parliamentary group in the Lower Saxon Parliament from 2003 to 2010 and became the chairman of the state party in 2008. In November 2016, he stepped down from this chairman role and announced his focus on a political career in Europe. McAllister holds both German and British citizenship. At one time, he was seen as a possible successor to Angela Merkel. Although he was later considered for the role of European Commissioner, this became impossible after his countrywoman, Ursula von der Leyen, was elected President of the European Commission.

Early life

David McAllister was born in West Berlin on January 12, 1971. His father was from Scotland, and his mother was German. He grew up speaking both German and English and went to a British primary school in Berlin.

Later, his family moved to a small town called Bad Bederkesa in Lower Saxony. He went to a boarding school there and finished his high school exams in 1989. After that, he served in the military from 1989 to 1991. Then he studied law at Leibniz University Hannover. He joined a youth group of the CDU political party when he was 17 because his father supported conservative values.

Political career

David McAllister began his political career in 1996 when he joined the council of Cuxhaven district. He served as mayor of his hometown, Bad Bederkesa, for a short time and later became the leader of his party's group in the Parliament of Lower Saxony. In 2010, he became the leader of Lower Saxony after the previous leader was elected President of Germany. However, he lost this position in 2013 after an election.

Since 2014, McAllister has been a member of the European Parliament. There, he works on foreign affairs and helps organize elections in other countries. He also holds important positions in international political groups, supporting strong partnerships between nations.

Other activities

David McAllister is involved in several important groups. He is a member of the board of trustees for Friends of Europe and has been since 2020. He also serves on the presidium for the German Council on Foreign Relations since 2019, and is a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations, the European Leadership Network, and the European Youth Parliament – Germany. Additionally, he is a member of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

He was also a member of the Supervisory Board for Volkswagen from 2010 to 2013.

Political positions

After the UK left the European Union, David McAllister worked with other leaders to create a special group for EU and UK lawmakers to talk together. In 2021, he helped start a request signed by many members of the European Parliament. They asked leaders to let Scotland and Wales join a program that helps students and teachers visit other countries.

McAllister also joined other lawmakers from Europe, the US, and Japan in asking world leaders to be careful about depending too much on China for important technologies like artificial intelligence and 5G.

Personal life

David McAllister is married to Dunja McAllister, who used to be named Kolleck, and she is also a lawyer. He lives in Bad Bederkesa in the district of Cuxhaven. He supports the football teams Rangers FC and Hannover 96.

Honours and awards

David McAllister has received several special honors for his work. In 2012, he was given an honorary doctorate by the University of Edinburgh. He also received the MEP Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2025, as shown by the MEP Award.