Ahead of the SPD leadership election in January, Juso chief Philipp Türmer has openly voiced his support for abolishing the current dual chair system. He suggested that a woman could serve as the sole chairperson, but rejected the idea of a man holding that role alone. Telling the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” (Monday edition), Türmer stated, “The dual leadership is not hardwired forever. I can envision a woman as the sole chairperson; I cannot envision a man.”
He commented that the previous attempt to strengthen women in the SPD using the co-chair structure had not been successful. Türmer argued that historically, when women were at the top, they often took the brunt of the criticism, effectively acting as a protective shield for the male partner. He dismissed the idea that the structure must return to a single man, asserting, “To deduce from this that a man must do it alone now would be absurd. Especially since we have very strong women whom I trust to lead alone.”
The Social Democrats are scheduled to elect their complete leadership at a party conference in January. This vote follows the resignation of Co-Chair Bärbel Bas in October. While SPD chief Lars Klingbeil initially desired a return to a co-chair setup comprising a woman and a man, Türmer confirmed that this is not a mandatory requirement. The party conference retains the power to vote and decide whether to scrap the dual leadership entirely.
