The leader of a German conservative party is found dead at a Berlin hotel

Hubert Aiwanger, leader of Germany’s Free Voters and Bavaria’s deputy governor and economy minister, was found dead in a hotel room in central Berlin on Wednesday evening, according to Berlin police and prosecutors. An investigation has been opened to determine the cause of death. German news agency dpa reported that the 55-year-old Aiwanger had planned to deliver a speech Wednesday afternoon at the opening of a Free Voters office in Berlin but withdrew for health reasons. Aiwanger led the party in Bavaria since 2006 and nationally since 2010, positioning it as a rival to the Christian Social Union. Bavaria’s governor Markus Söder called the death a “tragedy.” Aiwanger is survived by partner Tanja Schweiger and two children.