Muhterem Aras

Muhterem Aras (born 2 January 1966) is a German politician of the Alliance '90/The Greens party, who has served as Vice-President of the Landtag of Baden-Württemberg since 2016, having previously served as its President between 2016 and 2026. She has been a Member of the Landtag of Baden-Württemberg for the constituency of Stuttgart I since May 2011.

Education and profession Aras was born in Turkey in the eastern Anatolian village of Elmaağaç, among Alevi Kurds. She moved to Filderstadt in 1978 with her family. After matriculating in Stuttgart, she studied economics at the University of Hohenheim. In 2000 she founded an accounting firm with, at that time, twelve employees in Stuttgart.

Political activity Her political career began in 1992 when she entered the Green Party. In 1999, she was elected to the local council of Stuttgart. From 2007 to 2011, she was parliamentary leader of her party in that council. In 2011, Aras became the first Muslim woman to enter the Baden-Württemberg Landtag. In 2016 she ran again in the parliamentary constituency of Stuttgart I, and won the mandate with 42.4%, again the nation's best result for her party.

On 11 May 2016, Aras was elected as the new Baden-Württemberg Landtag president with the votes of 96 MPs, becoming the first member of the Greens, the first Muslim, and the first woman, to hold the position.

Personal life Muhterem Aras has been married since 1986 and has a son and a daughter. She grew up in a Kurdish Alevist family and lives in Stuttgart.