View source for Roland Koch


{{Short description|German jurist and politician}}
{{for|the German football coach|Roland Koch (footballer)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name          = Roland Koch
| image         = RKoch.jpg
| image_upright = 0.9
| caption       = Koch in 2008
| office        = [[Minister-President of Hesse]]
| deputy        = [[Ruth Wagner]]<br />[[Karin Wolff]]<br />Volker Bouffier<br />[[Jörg-Uwe Hahn]]
| term_start    = 7 April 1999
| term_end      = 31 August 2010
| predecessor   = [[Hans Eichel]]
| successor     = [[Volker Bouffier]]
| office1       = [[President of the German Bundesrat|President of the Bundesrat]]
| term_start1   = 30 April 1999
| term_end1     = 31 October 1999
| predecessor1  = Hans Eichel
| successor1    = [[Kurt Biedenkopf]]
| office2       = Leader of the [[Christian Democratic Union of Germany|Christian Democratic Union]] in [[Hesse]]
| term_start2   = 25 January 1998
| term_end2     = 12 June 2010
| 1blankname2   = {{nowrap|General Secretary}}
| 1namedata2    = Siegbert Seitz<br />Herbert Müller<br />[[Otti Geschka]]<br />[[Michael Boddenberg]]<br />[[Peter Beuth]]
| predecessor2  = [[Manfred Kanther]]
| successor2    = Volker Bouffier
| office3       = Leader of the [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|Christian Democratic Union]] in the [[Landtag of Hesse]]
| term_start3   = 13 July 1993
| term_end3     = 5 April 1999
| predecessor3  = Manfred Kanther
| successor3    = Norbert Kartmann
| term_start4   = 27 November 1990
| term_end4     = 5 April 1991
| predecessor4  = [[Hartmut Nassauer]]
| successor4    = Manfred Kanther
| office5       = Member of the [[Landtag of Hesse]] <br /> for Main-Taunus I
| term_start5   = 5 April 1987 
| term_end5     = 1 September 2010
| successor5    = Christian Heinz
| predecessor5  = Karl-Heinz Koch
| birth_date    = {{Birth date and age|1958|3|24|df=y}}
| birth_place   = [[Frankfurt]], [[West Germany]]
| death_date    = 
| death_place   = 
| party         = [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|CDU]]
| relations     = 
| residence     = 
| alma_mater    = [[Goethe University Frankfurt]]
| occupation    = [[Jurist]]
| signature     = 
| website       = {{URL|roland-koch.de}}
| footnotes     = 
}}
'''Roland Koch''' (born 24 March 1958) is a German [[jurist]] and former conservative politician of the [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|Christian Democratic Union]] (CDU). He was the 7th [[Minister-President|Minister President]] of [[Hesse]] from 7 April 1999, immediately becoming the 53rd [[President of the German Bundesrat|President]] of the [[Bundesrat of Germany|Bundesrat]], completing the term begun by his predecessor as Minister President, [[Hans Eichel]], until his resignation on 31 August 2010. During his time in office, Koch was widely regarded as one of [[Chancellor of Germany|Chancellor]] [[Angela Merkel]]'s main rivals within the CDU.<ref>Patrick McGroarty (26 May 2010), [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704026204575266024144634784 Party Ally—and Potential Rival—of Germany's Merkel Plans to Resign] ''Wall Street Journal''.</ref><ref>[http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/roland-koch-calls-it-quits-merkel-loses-an-adversary-and-an-ally-a-696626.html Roland Koch Calls It Quits: Merkel Loses an Adversary and an Ally] ''Spiegel Online'', 25 May 2010.</ref>

==Early life and education==
{{expand section|date=July 2017}}
Koch was born in [[Frankfurt am Main]]. He studied law and graduated in  1985. In 1979, Koch became the youngest person to hold the office of chairman of the [[Christian Democratic Union of Germany|CDU]]  in [[Main-Taunus]] district.

==Political career==
From 1983 until 1987, Koch served as vice-chair of the federal youth organization of the CDU.

In the [[1987 Hessian state election|1987 state elections]], Koch was elected to the [[Landtag of Hesse|State Parliament of Hesse]]. From 1989 until 1997 he was also a member of the [[Main-Taunus]] district council and parliamentary leader of the local CDU group. In 1991 he became vice-chair of the CDU parliamentary group, and in 1993 its chair. Until then Koch had been a city council member in his hometown of [[Eschborn]].  

From 1998 onward, Koch was chair of the CDU in Hesse.{{citation needed|date=July 2017}}

===Minister-President of Hesse, 1999–2010===
In the state elections in 1999, the CDU began collecting signatures to document the resistance in the population to plans of the federal government to make [[dual citizenship]] easier for foreigners to obtain. Because some people viewed this as "collecting signatures against foreigners", this campaign was portrayed as "xenophobic".<ref>[http://rhein-zeitung.de/on/99/01/05/topnews/staatsbuerger.html staatsbuergerschaft] Rhein Zeitung online, 5 January 1999</ref> Koch won the election and displaced the incumbent, [[Hans Eichel]]. Under his leadership, the CDU achieved the best result for the party there in 60 years.<ref>Christopher Rhoads (3 February 2003), [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1044208943187800384 German Voters Place Focus On Economy Instead of Iraq] ''Wall Street Journal''.</ref>

In 2003, Koch and [[Peer Steinbrück]], the Social Democrat premier of North Rhine Westphalia, together drew up a plan to reduce [[tax break]]s and subsidies, including those on coal by 12 percent over several years. The subsidies were a particularly sensitive issue in North Rhine-Westphalia, where most of [[Coal mining#Germany|the coal mines]] are located.<ref name="nytimes.com">Judy Dempsey (13 October 2005), [https://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/13/international/europe/13cnd-germany.html New German Finance Minister Likely to Help Merkel's Agenda] ''[[New York Times]]''.</ref>

Ahead of the [[2004 German presidential election]], Koch publicly endorsed [[Wolfgang Schäuble]] as the Christian Democrats’s candidate to succeed incumbent [[President of Germany|President]] [[Johannes Rau]].<ref>Hans-Ulrich Jörges and Hans Peter Schütz (30 December 2003), [https://www.stern.de/politik/deutschland/roland-koch--ja--ich-bin-fuer-wolfgang-schaeuble--3516260.html Roland Koch: "Ja, ich bin für Wolfgang Schäuble"] ''[[Stern (magazine)|Stern]]''.</ref> 

Under the leadership of party chairwoman [[Angela Merkel]], Koch was elected vice-chairman of the [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|CDU]] in November 2006, alongside [[Jürgen Rüttgers]], [[Annette Schavan]] and [[Christian Wulff]].<ref>[http://www.n-tv.de/politik/dossier/Merkels-bunte-Truppe-article200886.html CDU-Stellvertreter: Merkels bunte Truppe] ''[[n-tv]]'', 27 November 2006.</ref> By 2007, he and Rüttgers, his counterpart from the state of [[North Rhine-Westphalia]], agreed on approving a merger of their respective state-owned banks, WestLB and [[Helaba|Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen (Helaba)]].<ref>Beat Balzli, Wolfgang Reuter and Steffen Winter (20 November 2007), [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2007-12-19/trouble-ahead-for-state-owned-banks-in-germanybusinessweek-business-news-stock-market-and-financial-advice Trouble Ahead For State-Owned Banks in Germany] ''Bloomberg News''.</ref> WestLB was eventually broken up in 2012 after years of losses and controversy.

Prior to the [[2008 Hesse state election|Hesse state election of 2008]] Koch was once again accused of using xenophobic tactics by pledging to get tough on youth crime, which is concentrated among immigrant and minority groups. In the course of the election he lost his party's majority in the Hessian Parliament, but remained acting Minister President as his [[Social Democratic Party of Germany|SPD]] challenger [[Andrea Ypsilanti]] was unable to form a government.
Since none of the parties was able to build a majority coalition, they decided to give the voters another chance to produce a workable result.

In the January 2009 [[2009 Hesse state election|election]] the [[Free Democratic Party (Germany)|FDP]] made significant gains which allowed Koch to form a conservative-liberal coalition government, reelecting him as the Minister President of the State of Hesse. Ahead of the [[2009 German federal election|2009 federal elections]], he was tipped as a potential finance or economics minister in a coalition government of [[CDU/CSU]] and FDP.<ref>Bertrand Benoit (18 January 2009), [https://www.ft.com/content/4c74952c-e301-11dd-a5cf-0000779fd2ac Hesse win gives Merkel an electoral edge] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221233321/https://www.ft.com/content/4c74952c-e301-11dd-a5cf-0000779fd2ac |date=21 December 2016 }} ''[[Financial Times]]''.</ref><ref>[http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/roland-koch-calls-it-quits-merkel-loses-an-adversary-and-an-ally-a-696626.html Roland Koch Calls It Quits: Merkel Loses an Adversary and an Ally] ''[[Spiegel Online]]'', 25 May 2010.</ref>

In his capacity as Minister-President, Koch held various other positions, including the following:
* [[Fraport]], Chairman of the Supervisory Board (1999–2003)
* [[ZDF]], Member of the Board of Directors (2002–2011)<ref>Thomas Zorn (10 December 2010), [http://www.focus.de/kultur/kino_tv/fernseh-gremium-roland-koch-verlaesst-zdf-verwaltungsrat_aid_580563.html Roland Koch verlässt ZDF-Verwaltungsrat] ''[[Focus (German magazine)|Focus]]''.</ref>
* Hessische Kulturstiftung, Chairman of the Board of Trustees<ref>[http://www.hkst.de/en/foundation.html Board of Trustees] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160829041355/http://www.hkst.de/en/foundation.html |date=29 August 2016 }} Hessische Kulturstiftung, Wiesbaden.</ref>

On 25 May 2010 Koch announced his withdrawal from the active politics. At the time, he said he had informed Merkel of his plan to leave politics more than a year before.<ref>[http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/roland-koch-calls-it-quits-merkel-loses-an-adversary-and-an-ally-a-696626.html Roland Koch Calls It Quits: Merkel Loses an Adversary and an Ally] ''[[Spiegel Online]]'', 25 May 2010.</ref> He resigned as Minister-President of Hesse on 31 August 2010.<ref>[http://www.fr-online.de/in_und_ausland/politik/aktuell/2682635_Liveticker-Die-Pressekonferenz-zum-Koch-Rueckzug.html ''Liveticker: Die Pressekonferenz zum Koch-Rückzug''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528163623/http://www.fr-online.de/in_und_ausland/politik/aktuell/2682635_Liveticker-Die-Pressekonferenz-zum-Koch-Rueckzug.html |date=28 May 2010 }} from fr-online.de, 25 May 2010 (downloaded on 25 May 2010)</ref> He hinted that he was departing politics in order to become active in the business world.<ref>[http://www.ftd.de/politik/deutschland/:live-ticker-zum-ruecktritt-koch-tritt-zum-31-august-als-ministerpraesident-zurueck/50118302.html ''Koch tritt zum 31. August als Ministerpräsident zurück'' (Live-Ticker)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528102831/http://www.ftd.de/politik/deutschland/:live-ticker-zum-ruecktritt-koch-tritt-zum-31-august-als-ministerpraesident-zurueck/50118302.html |date=28 May 2010 }} from ft.de, 25 May 2010</ref>

===Political positions===
Koch was seen as a rhetorically gifted politician; critics have accused him of [[populism]].<ref>[[Sueddeutsche Zeitung|Sueddeutsche Zeitung online]] {{cite web |url=http://www.sueddeutsche.de/deutschland/artikel/521/150153/ |title=Steinmeier attackiert Koch ''Brutalstmöglicher Populismus'' - Deutschland - sueddeutsche.de |access-date=28 January 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080202044322/http://www.sueddeutsche.de/deutschland/artikel/521/150153/ |archive-date=2 February 2008  }} "Most brutal populism" - Hesse Prime Minister Roland Koch faces a spate of criticism on his statements about foreign teenage criminals</ref>
A sometimes polarizing figure on his party's right, Koch proved to be one of the main defenders of business and financial interests within his party.<ref>Quentin Peel and James Wilson (19 July 2010), [https://www.ft.com/content/415bd75c-927f-11df-9142-00144feab49a Koch reassures on German regulation] ''[[Financial Times]]''.</ref> In 2010, Koch and Merkel clashed over budget cuts, as Koch proposed cutbacks in education and research that Merkel opposed. He also suggested that a law passed to provide a guaranteed child-care facilities for children under 3 would have to be reconsidered.<ref>Judy Dempsey (11 May 2010), [https://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/12/world/europe/12iht-germany.html German Lawmakers Warn of Budget Cuts] ''[[International Herald Tribune]]''.</ref> In his final years as Minister-President, he largely worked smoothly with Merkel.<ref>Patrick McGroarty (26 May 2010), [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704026204575266024144634784 Party Ally—and Potential Rival—of Germany's Merkel Plans to Resign] ''[[Wall Street Journal]]''.</ref> Ahead of the Christian Democrats’ [[2018 Christian Democratic Union of Germany leadership election|leadership election]] in 2018, Koch publicly endorsed [[Friedrich Merz]] to succeed Angela Merkel as the party's chair.<ref>Christian Rothenberg (5 December 2018), [https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/deutschland/kampf-um-den-cdu-vorsitz-so-gross-sind-die-lager-der-unterstuetzer-fuer-merz-spahn-und-kramp-karrenbauer/23718502.html So groß sind die Lager der Unterstützer für Merz, Spahn und Kramp-Karrenbauer] ''[[Handelsblatt]]''.</ref>

On foreign policy, Koch forged a friendship with the [[Dalai Lama]] and supported the self-determination of [[Tibet]].<ref>Judy Dempsey (23 September 2007), [https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/23/world/europe/23iht-berlin.3.7609313.html Despite censure from Beijing, Merkel meets with Dalai Lama in Berlin] ''[[New York Times]]''.</ref>

==Life after politics==
On 29 October 2010, Koch was announced as designated [[chief executive officer]] of [[Bilfinger Berger]], Germany's second-largest builder.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-10-29/bilfinger-names-koch-ceo-after-the-merkel-ally-quits-politics.html |title=Bilfinger Names Koch CEO After the Merkel Ally Quits Politics |work=BusinessWeek |date=29 October 2010 |first=Patrick |last=Donahue |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101101194048/http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-10-29/bilfinger-names-koch-ceo-after-the-merkel-ally-quits-politics.html |archive-date=1 November 2010  }}</ref> In the following years, he orchestrated a reshuffle at the company away from civil engineering and construction in favor of higher-margin industrial services.<ref>Georgina Prodhan (3 September 2014), [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bilfinger-warning-idUSKBN0GY2N520140903 Bilfinger warns on profit again after CEO exit] ''[[Reuters]]''.</ref> During his tenure, Bilfinger Berger also agreed with the [[United States Department of Justice]] in 2013 to pay $32 million to resolve U.S. criminal charges that it bribed Nigerian officials to obtain contracts on a gas project in the African nation.<ref>[https://www.reuters.com/article/bilfinger-bribery-idUSL1N0JO1XN20131209 Bilfinger to pay $32 mln over U.S. corruption charges] ''[[Reuters]]'', 9 December 2013.</ref> In August 2014, he stepped down from the position on mutually agreed terms after he took responsibility for two profit warnings.<ref>Ludwig Burger (4 August 2014), [https://www.reuters.com/article/bilfinger-ceo-idUSWEB00QVV20140804 Bilfinger CEO quits after second profit warning since June] ''[[Reuters]]''.</ref>

In 2015, Koch opened a law firm in Frankfurt.<ref>Enrico Sauda (14 November 2015), [http://www.fnp.de/lokales/frankfurt/stadtgefluester/Roland-Koch-eroeffnet-Kanzlei;art51666,1698026 Roland Koch eröffnet Kanzlei] ''[[Frankfurter Neue Presse]]''.</ref> Since 2017, he has also been a Professor of Management Practice in Regulated Environments at the [[Frankfurt School of Finance & Management]].<ref>[https://www.frankfurt-school.de/en/home/research/staff/Roland-Koch Roland Koch] [[Frankfurt School of Finance & Management]].</ref>

Koch was a CDU delegate to the [[Federal Convention (Germany)|Federal Convention]] for the purpose of electing the [[President of Germany]] in 2017<ref>Ralf Euler (23 November 2016), [https://www.faz.net/aktuell/rhein-main/45-hessen-waehlen-den-bundespraesidenten-mit-14540529.html 45 Hessen wählen mit] ''[[Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung]]''.</ref> in [[2022 German presidential election|2022]].<ref>[https://www.hessenschau.de/politik/virologin-anwaeltin-ex-landeschef-wer-fuer-hessen-den-bundespraesidenten-waehlt,bundesversammlung-104.html Virologin, Anwältin, Ex-Landeschef: Wer für Hessen den Bundespräsidenten wählt] ''[[Hessenschau]]'', 8 December 2021.</ref>

In 2025, the representatives of public sector employers – [[Nancy Faeser]] and Karin Welge – appointed Koch as their arbitrator in a dispute with employees; appointed by the [[German Civil Service Federation]] and [[ver.di|United Services Trade Union]] (ver.di), Hans-Henning Lühr served as his counterpart in the talks.<ref>Steffen Herrmann (19 March 2025), [https://www.fr.de/wirtschaft/verhandlungstisch-roland-koch-als-schlichter-ein-rotes-tuch-am-93633580.html Ausgerechnet Roland Koch soll Tarifverhandlungen retten: Ein rotes Tuch am Verhandlungstisch] ''[[Frankfurter Rundschau]]''.</ref>

==Other activities==
===Corporate boards===
* {{ill|Dussmann Group|de}} Verwaltungs AG, Member of the Supervisory Board (since 2017)<ref>Alfons Frese (27 January 2017), [http://www.tagesspiegel.de/wirtschaft/dussmann-zoff-an-der-spitze/19310762.html Dussmann: Zoff an der Spitze] ''[[Der Tagesspiegel]]''.</ref>
* [[Vodafone Germany]], Member of the Supervisory Board (since 2015)<ref>[http://www.vodafone.de/unternehmen/aufsichtsrat.html Members of the Supervisory Board] [[Vodafone Germany]].</ref>
* [[UBS|UBS Deutschland]], Chairman of the Supervisory Board (2011–2021)<ref>[https://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/unternehmen/bauloewe-wird-banker-roland-koch-wird-aufsichtsrat-der-ubs-deutschland-1591964.html Roland Koch wird Aufsichtsrat der UBS Deutschland] ''[[Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung]]'', 9 November 2010.</ref><ref>[https://www.handelsblatt.com/finanzen/banken-versicherungen/banken/banken-wittig-loest-ex-politiker-koch-bei-ubs-europe-als-aufsichtsratchef-ab/27371226.html Wittig löst Ex-Politiker Koch bei UBS Europe als Aufsichtsratchef ab] ''[[Handelsblatt]]'', 28 June 2021.</ref>

===Non-profit organizations===
* [[Ludwig Erhard Foundation]], Chairman of the Board (since 2020)<ref>Tanja Kewes (29 November 2020), [https://www.handelsblatt.com/politik/deutschland/nach-tichys-rueckzug-neustart-bei-der-ludwig-erhard-stiftung-zwei-junge-frauen-neben-roland-koch-neu-im-vorstand/26669610.html Neustart bei der Ludwig-Erhard-Stiftung: Zwei junge Frauen neben Roland Koch neu im Vorstand] ''[[Handelsblatt]]''.</ref>
* [[Konrad Adenauer Foundation]] (KAS), Member of the Board of Trustees<ref>[http://www.kas.de/wf/de/71.4902/ Board of Trustees] [[Konrad Adenauer Foundation]].</ref>
* American Chamber of Commerce in Germany (AmCham Germany), Member of the Board of Directors<ref>[https://www.amcham.de/amcham-germany/organization-structure/ Board of Directors] American Chamber of Commerce in Germany (AmCham Germany).</ref>
* German Tuberous Sclerosis Association, Patron (since 2010)<ref>[http://www.tsdev.org/deutsch/der-verein/schirmherrschaft/66,15,92001,liste9.html Patrons] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221234141/http://www.tsdev.org/deutsch/der-verein/schirmherrschaft/66,15,92001,liste9.html |date=21 December 2016 }} German Tuberous Sclerosis Association.</ref>
* [[Rheingau Musik Festival]], Chairman of the Board of Trustees<ref>[http://www.rheingau-musik-festival.de/sponsoren-foerderer/kuratorium/ Board of Trustees] [[Rheingau Musik Festival]].</ref>
* [[Senckenberg Nature Research Society]], Member of the Board of Trustees<ref>[http://www.senckenberg.de/root/index.php?page_id=17049 Board of Trustees] [[Senckenberg Nature Research Society]].</ref>
* [[Städel Museum]], Member of the Board of Trustees<ref>[http://www.staedelmuseum.de/en/support Board of Trustees] [[Städel Museum]].</ref>

==Recognition==
* 2018 – Alfred Dregger Medal

==Controversy==
In February 2018, [[Bilfinger]] announced it would sue Koch and other former executives of the company for at least 100 million euros ($123 million) in damages for alleged breaches of duty in compliance and mergers.<ref>Ilona Wissenbach and Georgina Prodhan (20 February 2018), [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bilfinger-probe/bilfinger-to-seek-compliance-damages-from-former-executives-idUSKCN1G4252 Bilfinger to seek compliance damages from former executives] ''[[Reuters]]''.</ref>

==Personal life==
His father Karl-Heinz Koch was a politician in Hessen. Koch and his wife Anke have two sons. He is a [[Roman Catholic]].<ref>[http://www.bundesrat.de/nn_41838/SharedDocs/Personen/DE/laender/he/Koch-Roland.html?__nnn=true Bundesrat Roland Koch] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071006051745/http://www.bundesrat.de/nn_41838/SharedDocs/Personen/DE/laender/he/Koch-Roland.html?__nnn=true |date=6 October 2007 }} Bundesrat de</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*[http://www.roland-koch.de Homepage of Roland Koch] {{in lang|de}}
* {{HessBib PPN|128381191}}

{{start box}}
{{s-off}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Hans Eichel]] (SPD)}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[List of Ministers-President of Hesse|Minister-President of Hesse]]|years=1999–2010}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Volker Bouffier]] (CDU)}}
{{end box}}

{{Presidents of the German Federal Council}}
{{HessePMs}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koch, Roland}}
[[Category:Christian Democratic Union of Germany politicians]]
[[Category:1958 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Presidents of the German Bundesrat]]
[[Category:Politicians from Frankfurt]]
[[Category:German Roman Catholics]]
[[Category:Grand Crosses 1st class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany]]
[[Category:Minister-presidents of Hesse]]