Central Council President Josef Schuster Seeks Re-election

Josef Schuster has decided to run for another term as President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany. He stated his desire to continue contributing to the strong visibility of Jewish life in Germany, despite adverse circumstances, in a Tuesday interview with the "Main-Post." Schuster, a 72-year-old internist, has led the Jewish communities in Germany since 2014. He expressed particular anticipation for the opening of the Jewish Academy on November 2, in Frankfurt, and wishes to oversee its progress as Central Council President. The Central Council President is elected every four years by a nine-member presidium during the Council Assembly, typically held in late November. The Assembly sends three representatives, while the Central Council's Directorate appoints six members to the presidium, which then elects the president and two deputies. The Council Assembly is responsible for fundamental issues concerning the Jewish community and approves the Central Council's budget. Born in Haifa in 1954, Schuster's family returned to Unterfranken, Germany, two years later, to an area where his father's family had lived for generations before being expelled in 1938. He studied medicine in Würzburg and continues to work in emergency medical services. Although he closed his internal medicine practice in 2020 after nearly 30 years, he did so to dedicate more time to his presidential duties. Schuster previously served as the first chairman of the Würzburg and Unterfranken Jewish Community from 1998 until the present, and became president of the State Association of Israelite Religious Communities in Bavaria in 2002. In 2010, he was elected Vice President of the Central Council, and four years later, he succeeded Dieter Graumann as President.