The female person placed by a political party at the top of the electoral list for an election and often considered the party's main public face during the campaign.
example
Die Partei nominierte ihre Fraktionsvorsitzende als Spitzenkandidatin für die Bundestagswahl.
The party nominated its parliamentary group leader as the lead candidate for the federal election.
Usage tips
Compound word
The word is made up of 'Spitze' (top) and 'Kandidatin' (female candidate). 'Spitze' here means 'in first position' or 'leading'. So it describes the leading candidate.
EXAMPLE
Als Spitzenkandidatin führt sie die Wahlliste ihrer Partei an.
As lead candidate, she heads her party's electoral list.
Typical verbs
In a political context, a person is 'als Spitzenkandidatin aufgestellt' (put forward as lead candidate) or 'nominiert' (nominated). The person herself 'tritt als Spitzenkandidatin an' (runs as lead candidate).
EXAMPLE
Die Partei wird morgen ihre Spitzenkandidatin für die Wahl aufstellen.
The party will put forward its lead candidate for the election tomorrow.
Sentence structure and usage
To indicate the party, the genitive is often used ('Spitzenkandidatin der Grünen' — lead candidate of the Greens). To name the election, use 'für' + accusative ('Spitzenkandidatin für die Europawahl' — lead candidate for the European election).
EXAMPLE
Sie ist die Spitzenkandidatin der Opposition.
She is the opposition's lead candidate.
Compare with
confusable
Spitzenkandidatin vs Spitzenkandidat
lead candidate
'der Spitzenkandidat' and 'die Spitzenkandidatin' both refer to the most important person for a party in an election. The difference lies in the person's gender and in the grammatical form. 'der Spitzenkandidat' is used for a man, or sometimes generally when gender is not the focus. 'die Spitzenkandidatin' is used for a woman. The words can be confused because the political role is the same. So pay attention to which person you are talking about.
Spitzenkandidatin
Die Spitzenkandidatin spricht im Fernsehen über bezahlbare Wohnungen.
The lead candidate talks on television about affordable housing.
Spitzenkandidat
Der Spitzenkandidat stellt heute sein Programm für die Wahl vor.
The lead candidate is presenting his platform for the election today.