Sat in the Bundestag in the late 1970s for the CDU. From 1981 to 1985, Langguth was director of the Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung in Bonn. Between 1986 and 1987 he represented Berlin as a civil servant at a federal level. From 1988 to 1993, he was head of the European Commission's representation in Germany, in Bonn. From 1993 to 1997, Gerd Langguth was acting chairman of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung. From 2003 to 2004 he was active on the executive board of the Bürgerkonvent, a movement for political and economic reform.
Currently, Langguth teaches Political Science at the University of Bonn.