Olaf Scholz is to become the SPD candidate for chancellor in the early elections. The German media is widely commenting on the announcement of this nomination announced for Monday. The RND portal assessed that Scholz “has a chance to prove that his chancellorship was not a historical misunderstanding.” “Sueddeutsche Zeitung” calls him a “burnt brand” and writes that “he is probably the weakest, least suitable candidate for chancellor that the SPD has ever put forward.”
After the collapse of the government coalition of the SPD, the Greens and the FDP There was an intense debate among the Social Democrats about whether it would not be a good idea to nominate German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius in the early Bundestag elections as the party's candidate for chancellor. Due to his much higher popularity and presumably greater electoral chances, more and more SPD politicians at the local, state and federal levels have recently openly spoken in his favor – recalled the website of the daily “Welt”.
However, Pistorius announced on Thursday that he will not be the SPD candidate for chancellor in the upcoming federal elections. Shortly afterwards, party chairman Lars Klingbeil announced that the current chancellor Olaf Scholz is to be nominated by the party's board as a candidate for head of government on Monday. – Now we will very quickly provide clarity in the party bodies, on Monday in the party management: we want to start another electoral clash with Olaf Scholz – said Klingbeil, quoted by the dpa agency.
There was a dispute over the SPD candidate for chancellor, which caused uncertainty in the party's ranks and irritation among voters. Now, however, as the media write, due to the announcement of Scholz's appointment, it has come to an end.
“He has a chance to prove that his chancellorship was not a historical misunderstanding.”
“At first glance, it seems almost crazy: instead of nominating Boris Pistorius, the most popular politician in the country, the comrades support the last one in the top twenty of the ranking (of popularity – ed.). (…) And yet this decision may turn out to be wiser than it seems currently publishes – for Olaf Scholz, Boris Pistorius and SPD,” said the RND portal.
By withdrawing, Pistorius loses a slim chance of becoming chancellor and gains a big chance of becoming the next strong man of the SPD. And Scholz, who had already been written off, once again proved that he was tough. “Now he has a chance to prove that his chancellorship was not a historical misunderstanding,” RND said.
Scholz as a “burned-out brand”
According to the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily, Pistorius “could have saved the SPD from this mess” and made it clear from the very first moment that he was not ready to run, and that he was loyal to Scholz, and ended the matter there. “However, with his eloquent silence, Pistorius has been fueling the crisis for a long time. On Thursday evening, he realized that it would not benefit him, the SPD, or Scholz,” wrote “SZ.”
The weekly “Spiegel” noted that “Olaf Scholz is not a bad politician.” He gained experience as mayor of Hamburg, minister of finance and chancellor, is well versed in many political issues and, according to the newspaper, led the country well through the first year of the war Russia against Ukraine.
However, after this calculation, the weekly added: “And he is probably the weakest, least suitable candidate for chancellor that the SPD has ever put forward.”
“Spiegel” wrote that “Scholz is a so-called burned-out brand” and for most voters the face of the failed government of the SPD, the Greens and the FDP.
“The debate in the SPD is, of course, not over yet. (…) Perhaps it is only just beginning,” said Alexander Dobrindt, a politician from the opposition Christian Democrat party CSU, on ZDF television. He drew attention to the increasingly loud criticism of Scholz among his party comrades. According to him, in the context of exposing Scholz, a decision was made with which a large part of the SPD base does not agree.
Germany is to elect a new government in early elections on February 23, 2025.
Main photo source: PAP/EPA/ANTONIO LACERDA