Following days of internal debate within the Social Democratic Party (SPD) about who should be their candidate for chancellor in the upcoming early elections, the party now calls for unity.
SPD Vice-Chairperson Anke Rehlinger stated that the party is well-positioned for the parliamentary elections on February 23 with Olaf Scholz as the candidate for chancellor. “The SPD has a strong foundation now to emerge victorious, and Olaf Scholz is the chancellor. He should remain in that position,” Rehlinger said to RBB.
Unity Restored Despite Debate
Rehlinger emphasized that the recent debate over the chancellor candidacy should not be seen as a sign of division within the party. “Just because there was a debate about the candidacy does not mean there is no unity within the party. Now we need to unite and move forward,” she stated, according to dpa. However, polling data indicates that Scholz will need a significant boost in support over the next three months to win back voters’ confidence. He needs to close a gap of 15 to 20 percentage points in the polls to overcome the CDU/CSU union and remain as chancellor.
Pistorius Ends Candidacy Speculation
The debate over the SPD’s chancellor candidate ended after Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius withdrew his candidacy on Thursday. Following his decision, the SPD leadership is set to officially endorse Olaf Scholz as the candidate for chancellor in the early elections next Monday.
The debate had gained momentum after the collapse of the coalition government, with many local, state, and federal SPD politicians publicly supporting Pistorius as the chancellor candidate. Pistorius had emerged as the most popular SPD politician in recent polls.
However, in an evening video message, Pistorius announced that he would not be running for chancellor. “I just informed the party leadership and the parliamentary group that I am not available to run for chancellor,” Pistorius stated. He criticized the recent discussions, stating that the debate over the chancellor candidacy had hurt the SPD and confused voters.
