SPD leader Lars Klingbeil has urged his party to stop engaging in internal disputes. He emphasized that the SPD is strongest when it focuses on the problems faced by ordinary people in the country, rather than turning inward toward party politics. Klingbeil told the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” (Wednesday editions) that the concerns of German families revolve around practical issues, such as job security and ensuring their children have a good, safe future-these are the matters he works on daily.
However, given the party’s poor polling figures just weeks before several state elections, there is significant discontent within parts of the SPD regarding the party chairs, Klingbeil and Bärbel Bas. The possibility of replacing them through a special party meeting has been raised. Some members see Manuela Schwesig, the Minister-President of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, as a potential successor, particularly as she campaigns to retain her government post at the end of September.
Klingbeil praised Schwesig as an exemplary figure, especially in her approach to the AfD, which has right-wing elements within it. He stated that others should follow her lead: “First, prioritize your own policies and make your state strong as Minister-President. And then, firmly state what an AfD program would mean for the country.”
Calling Schwesig an excellent Minister-President, Klingbeil added that he enjoys working with her and that the entire SPD welcomes having such a strong personality within its ranks.
When asked about his future as party chairman, Klingbeil replied, “I very much enjoy being party chairman.” Regarding internal demands for a change in the SPD’s political direction, he stressed the importance of clearly defining what the party stands for and what it does not. He pointed out, for instance, that the contentious reduction of child maintenance allowances is not an SPD proposal, and the party would not approve of it. Nevertheless, he affirmed that the federal government’s general course of reform is correct.
