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Fried – view from Berlin
When love rules – what makes life as a political couple so complicated
These two politicians have dared to take a courageous step into the public eye. Nico Fried explains.
© Christoph Soeder/ / Picture Alliance / DPA
“In love in Berlin: The mayor and a senator are a couple. They dare to do what another political couple once refrained from doing – despite good arguments.”
In view of the other boring problems in their city, the Berliners welcomed the discussion about young happiness as a change. In addition to the question of whether love is legally and morally permitted in the Senate, the issue of how young happiness actually is also played a role. A non-attached MP seriously wanted to find out from the logbooks of the company cars whether there was anything there before. The investigative research not only failed because there have been no more logbooks since 2022. The significance would also have been doubtful: French President François Hollande showed in 2014 that politicians in love could also ride a scooter to their girlfriend; However, you should not allow yourself to be photographed.
The Berlin liaison was even discussed at the Chancellor’s home. Not because Olaf Scholz is known to have a weakness for gossip, as his predecessor certainly did. Rather, as can be heard, Scholz and his wife Britta Ernst remembered the discussions that they themselves experienced 13 years ago, when Scholz won the state elections in Hamburg with an absolute majority. One could say: Wegner and Günther-Wünsch live what Scholz and Ernst refrained from doing back then.
The senator and the head of government have happened before
Britta Ernst had acquired the status of a competent school politician over the years. Two SPD mayoral candidates, Thomas Mirow and Michael Naumann, had her on the list as senator, but lost the elections. Then it was up to Scholz, who had long avoided Hamburg state politics out of consideration for his wife’s career. Even back then, Scholz used the cloaked language that sometimes causes him problems today. When asked whether he would appoint Britta Ernst to the Senate, he always replied that the “ordre public” would be observed, a kind of unwritten code of conduct.
In March 2011, shortly before the appointment of the new Senate, Britta Ernst announced in a statement that she was withdrawing from Hamburg politics for personal reasons. “Politically,” Ernst wrote, “I believe it is acceptable for spouses or partners to belong to a joint government, even if part of the couple leads that government.” Their most important argument: These are public offices that are subject to constant control. “Politics by members of the government takes place in full view of everyone.” Therefore, it can be understood at any time and evaluated according to “whether wrong motives determine the actions”.
All I can say is: completely my opinion. I prefer a public relationship between those in government rather than secret flirtations between or among politicians – be it with lobby groups, in internal party networks or in other connections in which one hand washes the other in secret.
Nico Fried looks forward to hearing from you. Send him an email at [email protected]