The co-party chairman of the SPD will not run for office again.
(Photo: imago images / Emmanuele Contini)
Of course, there is a risk that the SPD will now start a staff debate. The decision by Norbert Walter-Borjans not to run for chairmanship again in December could be a reason for this. On the other hand, there is little risk that the comrades will risk relapsing into earlier trench warfare as a result.
The SPD is currently making a tidy and focused impression. A merit that can be attributed to Walter-Borjans. Without him and without his co-chair, Saskia Esken, Olaf Scholz would probably not have been able to act so freely and purposefully in the election campaign as a candidate for chancellor.
The party presented a remarkably closed picture, the left wing around ex-Juso boss Kevin Kühnert pulled along almost silently. To be honest: the SPD would not have been expected to be so professional.
The self-determined farewell to Walter-Borjans fits in with this – quasi to stop when it is at its best, as the saying goes. But what’s next? The SPD is now faced with a double challenge: by the party congress in December, the personnel issues must be clarified, at the same time the traffic light coalition is to be negotiated with the FDP and the Greens.
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
It is at least clear that Olaf Scholz will not reach for the party chairmanship. He opted for the chancellorship without claiming the leadership of the party at the same time.
Many comrades should still remember that the SPD has not had good experiences in the past with the separation of party chairmanship and chancellery. Just think of Gerhard Schröder and Oskar Lafontaine. But does that still play a role today? Not necessarily.
Scholz is already regarded as a secret boss by the Social Democrats since he overtook his fellow rivals for the Chancellery in the election campaign. He, too, played a major role in the fact that the party was able to overcome its years of low. As a result, the Social Democrats are by no means able to build on earlier times, when 30 percent and more were possible. But the election campaign has gone so far that the chancellorship is safe.
Lars Klingbeil would be a good choice
In this respect, it would be obvious if the campaign leader were to have a say in the replacement of the party leadership. Lars Klingbeil, previously Secretary General of the SPD, would be an ideal candidate to succeed Walter Borjans. He represents the younger generation in the SPD, is well networked in the party and, as a traffic light co-negotiator, also knows what is at stake on the government side.
Government action is likely to have a decisive influence on the work of the party leadership. If the SPD wants to win elections in the future too, it must not bend too much programmatically in the traffic light coalition. The future party leader must pay particular attention to this. The advantage is that he will probably not be involved in cabinet discipline.
This grants the legroom necessary to strengthen central competencies of the party, such as social justice, and to develop strategies in other political fields. The world of work is facing major upheavals due to digitization and climate change. This requires future-proof answers.
More: Walter-Borjans resigns SPD chairmanship – Scholz does not want to take on posts