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Thomas Oppermann (SPD) died surprisingly after the ZDF collapse: cause of death unclear - Merkel dismayed

2020-10-26T15:18:03.733Z


Bundestag Vice President Thomas Oppermann (66) is dead. He collapsed while working on TV with ZDF. Party colleagues of the SPD are shocked.


Bundestag Vice President Thomas Oppermann (66) is dead. He collapsed while working on TV with ZDF.

Party colleagues of the SPD are shocked.

  • SPD politician Thomas Oppermann is dead.

  • According to media reports, the Bundestag Vice President died after a collapse.

  • He was 66 years old.

Update of 26 October, 12.50 pm:

Even

President Frank-Walter Steinmeier

has the surprising deceased SPD politician Thomas Oppermann honored as "strong character fighter for democracy, the rule of law, progress and justice."

"We have lost a great person and a convinced democrat, a passionate parliamentarian," he wrote on Monday in a letter of condolence to

Oppermann's partner Petra Kirchhoff

.

In the letter, the Federal President recalled the long joint work, first in Lower Saxony and then in the Bundestag.

"He was my companion, advisor and good friend for many years." Even during their time together in Lower Saxony, he was impressed by Oppermann's creative will and his ability to hold out his own position even against resistance,

Steinmeier

continued. 

Update from October 26, 12:05 p.m.:

The dismay at the surprising

death of SPD Bundestag Vice President Thomas Oppermann

is great.

Party friends as well as political opponents were appalled on Monday - an SPD comrade spoke of a message in which "time stands still".

Oppermann died unexpectedly at the age of 66 - Merkel condoled

Update from October 26, 8:53 a.m.:

Chancellor Angela Merkel * was also dismayed by the death of Thomas Oppermann (66).

"For many years I have

valued

him as a reliable and fair social democratic partner in

large coalitions

," she said

on Monday,

according to

government spokesman Steffen Seibert

.

As Vice-President of the Bundestag, Oppermann “rendered outstanding services to our Parliament in turbulent times”.

Merkel expressed their condolences to Oppermann's family.

Also

CDU leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer

is concerned: "The news of the death Thomas Oppermann's shaken us and makes us sad.

We are now thinking above all of his wife and children, ”she said on Monday, according to a party spokesman at the beginning of a CDU presidium meeting in Berlin.

The CDU had dealt and discussed the matter with Oppermann in many rounds.

“Thomas Oppermann was always a staunch democrat and upright social democrat.

He will be missing. "

Sudden death of SPD politician Thomas Oppermann: ZDF is deeply dismayed

Update from October 26, 8.24 a.m

.: The ZDF was deeply dismayed by the sudden death of Bundestag Vice President Thomas Oppermann.

The 66-year-old SPD politician was

invited

as a conversation partner in the program

“Berlin direkt”

on Sunday evening

, the broadcaster announced on Monday.

Shortly before the planned

live switch

with Oppermann from the Max Planck Institute in Göttingen, the 66-year-old suddenly collapsed.

The first contribution of the show was already running.

The

ZDF employees

on site immediately

informed

the

ambulance service

that the politician was then taken to the university clinic in Göttingen.

However, the doctors could no longer save him.

The head of the ZDF capital studio in Berlin,

Theo Koll

, said the “Berlin direkt” team was deeply affected.

“In the preliminary discussion for the planned switch, we saw Thomas Oppermann, the always professional and relaxed politician.” Think of his family and friends.

Thomas Oppermann (66) is dead: Minister of Economic Affairs Altmaier is stunned

In addition to party colleagues from the SPD, leading politicians from the CDU * and CSU * are also shocked.

Oppermann's sudden death was a shock, wrote CSU boss

Markus Söder *

on Twitter on Monday.

“He was a great and committed democrat.”

Economics Minister Peter Altmaier

(CDU) is also stunned.

Oppermann and he were at the same time parliamentary directors of their parliamentary groups.

"The conflict between the government and the opposition turned into friendship: we have done a lot," he wrote about the SPD politician.

"You were a great Democrat and a really good guy."

Dear Thomas #Oppermann, years ago we were both 1st PGFs of our groups.

The antagonism between Reg & Opp turned into friendship: this is how we moved things.

You were a great democrat and a really good guy.

Your death stunned us.

RIP

- Peter Altmaier (@peteraltmaier) October 26, 2020

The candidate for the CDU chairmanship,

Friedrich Merz *

, was also shocked.

Oppermann was a contentious and distinguished colleague from the Bundestag, he wrote.

Collapsed during ZDF work: Thomas Oppermann died - Vice Chancellor Scholz was shocked

Update from October 26, 7.52 a.m.:

SPD leader

Norbert Walter-Borjans

was deeply shaken by the death of Bundestag

Vice

President Thomas Oppermann (66).

"A big shock for all of us," wrote Walter-Borjans on

Twitter

on Monday

.

Oppermann died suddenly and unexpectedly on Sunday.

Even

Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz

spoke of a shock.

"Our country is losing an accomplished politician, the Bundestag an outstanding vice president and the SPD a passionate and combative comrade," he wrote, adding: "We are all losing a friend - and we are sad."

The death of Thomas Oppermann is a shock for us all.

Our country is losing an accomplished politician, the Bundestag an outstanding Vice President and the SPD a passionate and combative comrade.

We all lose a friend - and we are sad.

- Olaf Scholz (@OlafScholz) October 26, 2020

SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich

praised Oppermann as an extraordinary politician.

The parliamentary group learned of his death on Sunday evening with great dismay, Mützenich told the

dpa

.

"His courageous and gripping manner made him an extraordinary politician who always acted with great responsibility." The thoughts of the entire parliamentary group are with Oppermann's family and friends.

The

ZDF

has meanwhile confirmed on Twitter that Oppermann had collapsed while working on TV with the broadcaster and was still being hospitalized.

Bundestag Vice President Thomas #Oppermann has died.

The 66-year-old collapsed on Sunday evening while working on TV with ZDF and was hospitalized.

- ZDF today (@ZDFheute) October 26, 2020

SPD politician Thomas Oppermann is dead

First report from October 26th, 7.14 a.m.:

Berlin - Bundestag

Vice

President

Thomas Oppermann

is dead. As

n-tv

and

RTL

unanimously report, the 66-year-old died in the evening.

Accordingly, he

collapsed while

working on

TV with ZDF

.

He came to a hospital.

SPD politician Thomas Oppermann dead: He was Bundestag Vice President since 2017

He has been Vice

President of the Bundestag

since 2017

.

He had recently announced that he no longer wanted to be a member of the next Bundestag.

According to

RTL,

Oppermann leaves

his partner and a total of four children.

Labor Minister Hubertus Heil mourns SPD colleague Thomas Oppermann

In the meantime,

Hubertus Heil

, Federal Minister for Labor and Social Affairs, has confirmed Oppermann's death and is shocked: “The news of the sudden death of my colleague and comrade Thomas Oppermann fills me with deep sadness.

Thomas has rendered outstanding services to our country and social democracy with passion and understanding.

My thoughts are with his family, ”he writes on Twitter.

The news of the sudden death of my colleague and comrade Thomas Oppermann fills me with deep sadness.

Thomas has rendered outstanding services to our country and social democracy with passion and understanding.

My thoughts are with his family.

- Hubertus Heil (@hubertus_heil) October 26, 2020

Oppermann sat in the Bundestag since 2005, from 2013 to 2017 he was parliamentary group leader of the

SPD *

.

The 66-year-old began his political career in 1980. Before he moved into the Bundestag, he was active in

state

politics

in Lower Saxony

, including as Minister of Science.

(came with dpa) * Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen digital editorial network.

More information soon.

List of rubric lists: © Michael Kappeler / dpa / picture alliance

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2020-10-26

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