“I’m not stuck in my seat either” – Klingbeil leaves open his candidacy for party leadership

The SPD federal chairman and finance minister Lars Klingbeil has left it open whether he will run again as party leader in January, but in his own words he is not sticking to his chair. At a members' convention of the Ruhr SPD in Bochum, he appealed that no matter who was elected to the top, he needed "the solidarity of the entire party."

Later, after the end of the event, he added to media representatives that he was very happy to be party leader, but that he was aware of criticism of him.

After Bärbel Bas resigned as Federal Labor Minister and co-chair in mid-October, the party leadership is to be re-elected in January. "We are now in a very special situation. I also know that there is criticism, I also invite this criticism because my goal is for the SPD to position itself in the best possible way at the party conference in mid-January."

Vice Chancellor Klingbeil emphasized: "We are in very difficult times. We are in a situation that is incredibly difficult economically, in terms of the budget, economically and also in terms of foreign policy, and the SPD needs the best positioning." He doesn't make the decision alone. This is currently being discussed internally. He couldn't yet say when the proposal would come.

“But for me the important thing is that it is the best possible lineup for the SPD, and I’m not sticking to my chair, but rather saying: I will do my part to ensure that this best possible lineup is achieved in the end.”

The former Labor Minister Hubertus Heil had kept his candidacy open for party leadership. “I can’t rule out the possibility of running,” said the SPD politician three weeks ago on ARD in response to a corresponding question. “We will speak now.”

Manuela Schwesig, the Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, is also seen as having good prospects for the dual leadership.