The Minister-President of Saarland and SPD deputy Anke Rehlinger called for decisive action within her party after the party’s defeat in the Rhineland-Palatinate state elections, urging that the SPD must take “consequences in three steps”. She told the network “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” that “the SPD has never succeeded by simply treating its problems as solved through personnel changes”. Rehlinger said she would not comment on possible personnel changes, but criticized the federal party, saying the SPD in Berlin is viewed as too technocratic and “often sounds like filing cabinets”. She emphasized that the SPD needs to be seen as the party of jobs-“the colleague you can rely on”.
Rehlinger outlined three priorities. First, the party must confront the issues that people discuss over dinner at home, rather than focusing only on topics that garner the most applause within the SPD. Second, the SPD must link economic strength with social justice. “Social policy is important, but economic policy is the foundation that allows everyone to well” she said, urging the federal government to present a bold reform program to make Germany fit. Third, the party must finally address the low‑performance state associations. “If the SPD remains single‑digit in large states for a prolonged period, it can’t win solid federal results” she warned, citing the recent Baden‑Württemberg election in which the SPD fell to 5.5 percent.