In a hard Casting you must apply for the candidate for the SPD party chairmanship. Five weeks of tours you choose the Republic, then, for the first time the party members. Sabine Kinkartz reported.
“You said you were a Democrat, a truely social”, directs a party member in his question to the Federal Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor Olaf Scholz. “I would like to know why you as a truely social-Democrat in 15 years as General Secretary, as Deputy Chairman of the party, as an influential mayor managed to save the party and protect it from destruction.”
Scholz maintains posture. As a political professional, he has expected such a question. For what felt like an eternity he reigns in Berlin and in the city-state of Hamburg. Like no other, he has joined the seemingly inexorable decline of the SPD from the beginning to the present day: in 1998, he moved into the Bundestag, the SPD took over the votes of 40 percent of the voters.
Olaf Scholz is a sober person who can only inspire hard
Today, the SPD is in the polls at 14 percent. Also in state elections, it only goes downhill from here.
With a new party leadership wants to finally get the curve. Seven couples and a single candidate have applied for this and are touring together through the Republic. According to Saarbrücken on Thursday Hannover was on Friday, the second Station, on Saturday, Bernburg on the Saale in it. Olaf Scholz is arguably the most prominent among the candidates.
The couple running it are lacking
The provocative question of Comrade tried to counter Scholz with a joke: “So, thank you very much for the confidence in my possibilities.” In front of 900 spectators, many of whom don’t have to stand because the chairs are sufficient, he tries to back his political past in a more advantageous light. On what he has done from his point of view, everything. Can’t convince he in order. The subdued applause shows this evening. Also his political partner, Klara Geywitz can’t change that.
The country politician from the state of Brandenburg and the Hamburg-based Scholz seem wooden and stay pale. As a Duo they seem still too little to each other. However, the Format of the candidate Tour is everything else than easy. Only five minutes, each Team in the round of introductions time. In the question rounds are 60 seconds for each answer.
The field of Candidates is large, therefore, the answers must be short
In Hanover, the Moderator breaks rigorously, if the time is expired. This is not the audience, and so a new rule on the third party conference on Saturday in Bernburg on the river Saale: A part of a record may be set in the end. However, in a no Quarter: No event longer than two and a half hours.
A Marathon by the Republic of
Up to the 12. October the 15 candidates in the Republic tours, and 23 so-called regional conferences the around 425,000 SPD members present to be. In a members ‘ decision should then be decided who is to compete at the SPD Federal party Congress in early December, the successor of the outgoing SPD chair Andrea Nahles.
Convince in terms of content, but can inspire little: Ex-NRW Finance Minister Norbert Walter-Borjans, and member of the Bundestag Saskia esque
Yet, it was always so, that a few had taken from the SPD leadership in the back rooms, where it is determined who is the Chairman, who is a Chancellor candidate, and who Minister, says SPD General Secretary, Lars Klingbeil: “is it a day for now.” He was pleased that the party “new way” to go.
The Charisma of the Newcomer
After the first Casting-dates for the vacant Director’s chair one of the most striking: The supposed favorites have a hard time. Probably because a Team dominates the stage outright scores: Christine Kampmann and Michael Roth. So fresh, cheerful and optimistic, the former SPD Federal Minister for family Affairs from North Rhine work-Westphalia and the Minister of state in the foreign office, that all the other candidates look next old.
Delight most so far: Michael Roth, and Christina Kampmann
“We are full of enthusiasm,” calls the 39-year-old Kampmann to the audience in Hannover. “With us you get 100 percent,” added the 49-year-old Roth, who promises his Post in the Federal government to abandon, should he and Kampmann new SPD Chairman. There is strong applause. “We were the first to have called for the end of the black Zero, because we need more investment in infrastructure and education policy,” stresses Kampmann in Bernburg. A clear side-swipe against the Federal Minister of Finance Scholz, and can be used to trigger “even with a sound fiscal policy, some of it” goes no enthusiasm.
It blows a left Wind
More money for pensioners, the poor and people who deserve a bad end to the privatisation of hospitals, and drastic limits on Executive salaries and the re-introduction of the wealth tax: The linker, the claims of the candidates, the stronger the applause of the spectators.
Also go down well: The left SPD Vice Ralf Stegner and Gesine Schwan
More left-wing policy will not be in a government coalition with the CDU and CSU, but not enforceable. “Here, hardly a proposal has been brought in the Grand coalition possible,” says the member of the Bundestag Karl Lauterbach at the end of the Evening in Hannover. Most of the political demands would be for a long time already on the table. Lauterbach and his comrade-in-arms Nina Scheer desperately want to get out of the coalition and “for the left-green majorities struggle”: “The SPD makes it hard to believe, if you continue like this,” says Lauterbach.
Want to quickly from the government of the Union out: Karl Lauterbach
That goes down well with the SPD audience, the clapping again and again, if the discharge is discussed from the Grand coalition. Member of the government Scholz, who has thrown his hat only after long Hesitation, in the Ring, not like this. He would keep the SPD in the Federal government. After he was on Friday in Hanover, hardly points to it provides his concept on Saturday in Bernburg on the river Saale something. He was the Federal Finance Minister by profession, but a lawyer for labour and social law, so Scholz. In this function he had used in Hamburg for many years for socially disadvantaged people.
The competition will increase
Scholz knows that he only has a Chance if he embodies as much as possible of social democracy and the Berlin office and a number of functions, he is, in the Background. This will not be easy. Especially not when – and it is expected candidates will begin to advertise more aggressively and thereby also at the expense of others.
The 15 Comrades are quite nice to each other. After two and a half hours of Casting they are all next to each other, hold hands and throw their arms together up. As an actor, have just successfully performed a piece and let celebrate. “I don’t have even as many votes as I would like to forgive,” said a member of the SPD in Bern castle, it would probably be best if all of the candidates, together, would lead the SPD. At the end of may, however, gain just a Duo.