German Finance Minister Christian Lindner was re-elected yesterday Friday as president of the Liberal Party (FDP) for another two years.

At the party’s federal congress in Berlin, the candidacy of the 44-year-old Lindner garnered 88% of the vote. Christian Lindner has led the FDP – one of the three parties that make up the governing coalition in Germany – since December 2013.

In the relevant vote, Lindner received 511 votes, 51 FDP members voted against and 17 abstained. He expressed his gratitude “for this special support”. When he was elected two years ago, he received 93% of the vote, but that was just a few months before parliamentary elections, a period typically characterized by party rallying.

Earlier, during his 90-minute speech, Lindner had urged the government partners (SPD and Greens) to be frugal in order to contain high inflation and limit public debt. However, he ruled out the possibility of tax increases.

He also touched on contentious issues within the governing coalition – in which his party is the junior partner – most notably the energy bill, which envisages the replacement of heating systems that run on fossil fuels. He said the bill has not yet taken the shape it should have before it is tabled for a vote in the Bundestag.

On basic child benefit, Lindner pointed out that a lot has already been done for children. If he had to choose between additional student transport subsidies and targeted investment in education, he said he would support strengthening the education system.

He also defended Transport Minister Volker Vissing, from the FDP, who has come under heavy criticism for his policies from both the Greens and climate activists.