In a recent development, SPD chairman Lars Klingbeil has reportedly approached Olaf Scholz on multiple occasions, advising the Chancellor to forgo a potential re-run for the top office. According to reports by T-Online and the Tagesspiegel, Klingbeil has been driven by the concerns of the SPD’s inner circle and powerful state branches, which, following the breakdown of the coalition in November 2024, advocated for Defense Minister Boris Pistorius as the most popular German politician to take the reins.
Sources within the SPD and its surroundings claim that, alongside Klingbeil, Co-Vice Chairman Saskia Esken and General Secretary Matthias Miersch had also reached the conclusion that, with Scholz as the candidate, the early federal election would be unlikely to be won. Scholz, however, reportedly remained steadfast in his claim to the top office in his conversations with Klingbeil.
Klingbeil, who was unreachable for comment on Tuesday, had his spokesperson attribute the lack of response to scheduling conflicts. The incident marked a turning point in the internal debate, as the SPD leadership refrained from immediately re-nominating Scholz as the candidate. This led to a days-long, sometimes public, discussion about Scholz’s suitability, with several SPD politicians openly or indirectly expressing support for Pistorius as the candidate.
Chancellor’s Office Minister and Scholz confidant Wolfgang Schmidt, on the other hand, was reportedly extremely upset with the SPD leadership during this period, according to the Tagesspiegel, citing a Chancellor’s Office employee. It was also rumored in the office that Schmidt intended to secretly support Pistorius’s candidacy from his position, although Schmidt himself dismissed the claim as “utter nonsense.