Third resignation in three months

CDU politician Jens Spahn announced his resignation from the Bundestag Budget Committee on Monday midday, 28 September 2026. In a WhatsApp message sent to the 14 members of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group's budget committee working group, Spahn declared that he would give up his seat following weekend deliberations. The 46-year-old lawmaker, who represents the constituency of Steinfurt I-Borken I and has held a Bundestag seat since 2002, had joined the influential committee at the start of September 2026. His decision followed mounting discontent among fellow conservative parliamentarians regarding his recent conduct. Spahn coordinated the step with the new CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader, Thorsten Frei, agreeing to concentrate on his constituency and his family for the time being.

Absence and the Sardinia vacation

The controversy intensified during the preceding parliamentary sitting week, when Spahn failed to attend two days of parliamentary business, including a plenary debate and a meeting of the Budget Committee. Spahn had submitted an official excuse claiming that he needed to care for his sick child. However, the newspaper Bild subsequently published photographs showing Spahn holding his roughly three-month-old infant at Olbia Airport on the Italian island of Sardinia. The revelation sparked anger among members of the Union budget working group, with multiple lawmakers pushing for his removal from the post. Rather than facing a formal expulsion from the committee, Spahn chose to step down voluntarily.

“After careful consideration over the weekend, I will give up my seat on the Budget Committee.”

“Everything surrounding my person is currently so politicised that normal work will hardly be possible.”

Previous surrenders of leadership posts

The resignation represents Spahn's third loss of political office since the summer of 2026. In July 2026, Spahn resigned as chairman of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group after disclosing that he and his husband had used an American surrogate mother to have a child. The method contradicted official CDU policy, which explicitly rejects surrogacy and had reaffirmed that stance by delegate majority during the federal party congress in February 2026. The announcement provoked widespread criticism from internal party bodies, including the Thuringia Frauen Union. In early September 2026, at a regional party conference in Havixbeck, Spahn also declined to run again for the chairmanship of the CDU Münsterland district association, asking party members for forgiveness for disappointing their trust.

“In addition, I notice in and on myself that my resignation in July is still much too fresh to fully restart as if nothing had happened.”

Lost budgetary role and political future

Spahn had secured the committee post during the internal reshuffle following his July 2026 resignation. Within the Budget Committee, Spahn had been appointed as the CDU/CSU rapporteur for Section 05, overseeing the nearly 6 billion euro budget allocated to the Federal Foreign Office. Several Union lawmakers had questioned granting Spahn such a prestigious portfolio, arguing that taking a high-profile assignment so soon after his July departure bypassed the traditional period of political retreat. Spahn previously served as Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Finance and as Federal Minister of Health until 2021. Following his committee exit, Spahn continues to serve as a backbench lawmaker without an assigned committee portfolio.