Party chairmanship: Esken and Klingbeil should lead the SPD

The SPD Presidium has nominated the previous Secretary General Klingbeil as the new co-party chairman. The 43-year-old is to succeed Walter-Borjans and lead the party together with the previous chairman Esken.

The previous Secretary General Lars Klingbeil is to form the new SPD leadership duo together with Saskia Esken. According to information from ARD capital studios the SPD presidium nominated the two in the morning at a presidium meeting. Esken had already announced last week that they would be ready for another term. Klingbeil had so far kept a candidacy open.

“I am very honored that my name is mentioned for the role of the SPD chairman,” said Klingbeil to the “RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland”. It did not become more explicit. “The chair is a very important, traditional and attractive office in which you can achieve a lot.”

In the morning Esken had stated that she could “very well imagine” a double point with a cleaver. She has been working closely with the SPD general secretary for many years, said Esken im ARD morning magazine. The 43-year-old is an “architect of the renewal of the SPD” and she values ​​him personally. “As an election campaign manager, Klingbeil played a decisive role in the SPD’s victory in the federal elections.

No ministerial office for Esken and Klingbeil

The previous co-party leader Walter-Borjans had announced that he would not run again after two years in office. The 69-year-old justified his move by saying that younger people should now take the helm. The SPD party conference in Berlin in mid-December has the final say in this personnel decision.

It is considered certain that both Klingbeil and Esken are no longer eligible for a ministerial office in a possible traffic light cabinet. The SPD would like to maintain the separation of party leadership and government office as before. It is still unclear who will succeed Klingbeil as General Secretary of the SPD. A possible candidate is ex-Juso boss and party vice Kevin Kühnert.

The Working Group of Social Democratic Women (ARSP) had called for a woman to succeed Klingbeil for the post of general secretary. “Parity starts at the top, and there are many talented women who, as general secretary, could represent the SPD externally,” said ARSP chairwoman Maria Noichl of the “Rheinische Post”. Noichl went on to say: “With Olaf Scholz as candidate for chancellor and Rolf Mützenich as parliamentary group leader, a general secretary would be the logical conclusion.”