Juan Carlos Barrena
Berlin
Tuesday, October 8, 2024, 17:16
The ruling German Social Democratic Party (SPD) today announced the nomination of Matthias Miersch as the new general secretary following the unexpected resignation this Monday of Kevin Kühnert from that position for health reasons. Vice president of the parliamentary group in the Bundestag, Miersch will have the complicated mission of directing his party’s electoral campaign for the general elections in September 2025 when his party is currently registering historic lows in voting intention and the popularity of the federal chancellor, Olaf Scholz, It is found on the floor.
A prominent member of the left wing of the party, Miersch warned with an eye on his co-religionist and head of the Government that it will not be “comfortable, not even a simple ‘I say yes to everything’.” He assumed that Scholz is a candidate for reelection as head of the federal Executive, but ruled out the need to still officially nominate him. “We have a candidate, but now what he needs to do is focus on the current work of his cabinet,” he said.
A deputy in the Lower House for almost twenty years and a criminal lawyer by profession, Miersch also warned his party colleagues during the press conference at the Willy Brandt Haus that “we have a lot to do” in order to remove his formation and its candidate from the popularity sinkhole. The electoral polls coincide in highlighting in early elections a sure victory of the conservative opposition of Bavarian Christian Democrats and Social Christians (CDU/CSU), to whom they grant an average of 32% of votes, while the SPD would record the worst result in its history in a general election with 16% of the vote, half that of its main rivals.
Even more worrying is that German social democracy would also be surpassed by the extreme right and would be no more than the third parliamentary force in the Bundestag. In the last 8 polls of as many demographic institutes, the xenophobic Alternative for Germany has around 18% of the vote, almost doubling its results from four years ago and breaking the traditional duel between the SPD and the CDU/CSU Union for power. Miersch announced that he will fight as general secretary against right-wing extremism and populism, and will do so in exchange for ecology, the country’s economic relaunch and social cohesion.
Criticism of the opposition
The new general secretary of the SPD took advantage of his presentation to criticize the conservative opposition. “Merz’s CDU represents practically everything that I do not defend,” said Miersch, referring to the president of the Christian Democrats and conservative candidate for the federal chancellery, Friedrich Merz. He also distanced himself from this and his statement that “you have to have respect for those who earn more money.” Politics is important especially for the disadvantaged, Miersch commented on that demand.
The new head of the next electoral campaign for the SPD said he was living “a very special moment” and expressed his respect to his predecessor for the decision to prioritize his health. He commented that the position he assumes immediately and as commissioner until his formal election in a congress represents “an enormous responsibility.” With only a year to go before the legislative elections in Germany, Miersch stressed that their result will decide the direction the country takes.
Matthias Miersch was escorted during his presentation by the two co-presidents of the SPD, Saskia Esken and Lars Klingbeil, who stated that this Monday they had experienced “a very moving day for German social democracy” with the resignation of Kühnert, 35 years old and a great prestige within his own party. A personal friend of Kühnert, Klingbeil was especially affected by the resignation. Both, the youngest leaders of the party, until now appeared as the most potential promoters of the recovery of German social democracy in the German electorate.
The new general secretary of the SPD appears as an expert and parliamentary spokesman for the party on Energy and Environment issues. He is a staunch defender of the energy transition and the development of alternative energies. At 55 years old, he knows well the ins and outs of the party and those who call the shots in it, and is respected by his political rivals in the German lower house.
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