New SPD boss at her side: Esken can “very well imagine” Klingbeil as a co

New SPD boss at her side
Esken can “very well imagine” Klingbeil as Co

Norbert Walter-Borjans leaves, Saskia Esken stays. But with whom will the party leader lead the SPD from December? Shortly before the board officially proposes a successor today, Esken confirms in principle that everything will boil down to the previous Secretary General.

In the case of the SPD, there are signs of an amicable clarification of the future party leadership. After Norbert Walter-Borjans does not want to run again at the federal party conference in December, he is likely to be succeeded by the previous Secretary General Lars Klingbeil. “He is also an architect of the renewal of the SPD in his work as general secretary, I value him personally very much,” said the SPD chairwoman Saskia Esken in the ARD. “In this respect, it’s a constellation that I can very well imagine.” The party executive meets in the morning to then make a proposal for the successor to Walter-Borjan.

Esken had announced last week that after two years at Walter-Borjan’s side, he wanted to run again for the chairmanship. In doing so, she waived a possible ministerial post in the future traffic light government under Olaf Scholz, which the SPD is currently negotiating with the FDP and the Greens. “It is of course exciting as a minister, as a minister in a future coalition like the one we are forming now, to be involved and to move things forward,” said Esken. “But I’ve also shown effectiveness as party leader over the past two years and I look forward to continuing this work.”

Esken is confident about coalition negotiations

Klingbeil has so far not officially confirmed his interest in the party leadership, especially since he, like Esken, had been treated as a possible federal minister in the traffic light cabinet. Esken indirectly confirmed that it comes down to the 43-year-old Lower Saxony. “I have been working closely with Lars Klingbeil for many, many years. We have known each other for much longer, not just for these two years in my work in the party leadership,” said Esken.

She does not expect a member survey about the future party leadership. “The chair will be a question that we will also debate with the members, but a membership decision only makes sense if several people actually apply,” said the 60-year-old party left. “If there is no choice in that sense, then that doesn’t make any sense either.” However, the members should vote on the coalition agreement on the traffic light government.

According to Esken, Esken is not worried that there are currently difficulties in the coalition negotiations, as the Green leadership made public at the end of last week. It is “not surprising” that with three parties that are so different “there are also points on which one does not immediately agree,” said Esken. But everyone involved “went out of their way to get together”. Esken said: “I am very confident that we can do that too.” The SPD party leadership will be re-elected at a party congress from December 10th to 12th in Berlin.

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