New minister - Dörte Schall nominated as minister in Rhineland-Palatinate
SPD politician Dorte Schall from North Rhine-Westphalia is set to become the new Minister in Alexander Schweitzer's future cabinet in Rhineland-Palatinate. The 46-year-old from Bonn will follow Schweitzer as Minister for Social Affairs, Labor, Transformation and Digitalization. However, Schweitzer must first be elected as the successor of Minister President Malu Dreyer (also SPD) on the coming Wednesday.
Schweitzer and the new Minister have known each other since 1996 from the Jusos, as Schweitzer stated during Schall's presentation in Mainz. He has followed her political career since then, and she has been his number one choice for his succession.
Schall was born in Ludwigshafen and attended school there. She studied law in Trier and joined the IG BCE (Industry, Chemicals, Energy) trade union in the Neuwied and Düsseldorf regions as a secretary after passing the referendary exam at the Higher Regional Court in Koblenz.
Schweitzer sees the change as a sign of confidence
After a half-evening-long conversation, it was clear that the native Palatinate woman would return to Rhineland-Palatinate, Schweitzer said. And that, even though her current job as deputy mayor in Mönchengladbach still goes until 2031, and the term in Rhineland-Palatinate only lasts until 2026. This is a statement of confidence and for cooperation beyond 2026, Schweitzer emphasized. This also includes Schall's decision to switch Landesverband.
With Schall's decision, the proportion of women in the state government remains unchanged after Dreyer's resignation. The other five ministers and three ministers will remain in office, and there is no planned cabinet reshuffle, Schweitzer stated during his nomination.
Further changes at the level of state secretaries
However, a cabinet shuffle is apparent at the level of state secretaries among Social Democrats. Schweitzer's state secretary and longtime companion Fedor Ruhose will become the head of the State Chancellery. Ruhose's successor in the ministry should be Denis Alt, Schweitzer announced. The 43-year-old has been a state secretary in the Science and Health Ministry.
Alt is to be succeeded by Nicole Steingaß as Innenstaatssekretärin and Special Commissioner for the Reconstruction in the Ahr Valley. Her successor will be Daniel Stich, who is currently Ministerialdirektor in the Science and Health Ministry and the state's vaccination coordinator during the pandemic. His planned transfer to the European Parliament was surprisingly canceled, and he could not secure the candidacy at the SPD party convention.
DGB chief Wingertszahn offers close cooperation
The chairwoman of the DGB Rheinland-Palatinate/Saarland, Susanne Wingertszahn, offered the new Minister close cooperation. She was pleased that with Schall, an experienced social politician would take over from Schweitzer, who also knows the work of the trade unions from the inside. "She will certainly have the necessary sensitivity for the concerns of employees and the necessity of strong co-determination of employees in the transformation."
She expects Schall to pick up on some projects and "simultaneously tackle new topics courageously", the DGB chief said. For example, it is necessary to further develop the Transformationsagentur and raise tariff binding.
The chairman of the AfD-State Parliamentary Faction, Jan Bollinger, stated that it is concerning if the SPD considers gender as the most important criterion for filling highest offices. "The personnel pool of the State SPD must be thin if it has to import its personnel from neighboring federal states."
- Dorte Schall, an SPD politician from North Rhine-Westphalia, is expected to join Alexander Schweitzer's future cabinet in Rhineland-Palatinate as the Minister for Social Affairs, Labor, Transformation, and Digitization.
- Schweitzer and Schall have a long history, having known each other since 1996 from the Jusos in North Rhine-Westphalia.
- Born in Ludwigshafen, Schall studied law in Trier and later joined the IG BCE trade union in the Neuwied and Düsseldorf regions.
- Schweitzer sees Schall's decision to join his cabinet as a sign of confidence and a statement of cooperation beyond 2026.
- With Schall's decision, the proportion of women in the state government remains the same, as there are no planned changes to the other ministers.
- However, there are changes at the level of state secretaries among Social Democrats, with Fedor Ruhose becoming the head of the State Chancellery and Denis Alt becoming Schwarz's state secretary.
- DGB Rheinland-Palatinate/Saarland chairwoman Susanne Wingertszahn offers close cooperation to Schall, praising her as an experienced social politician.
- The chairman of the AfD-State Parliamentary Faction, Jan Bollinger, expresses concern over the SPD considering gender as the primary criterion for filling high-ranking positions.
- Schall will follow Schweitzer as Minister in the government of Minister President Malu Dreyer (SPD) in Rhineland-Palatinate, after Schweitzer's election as Minister President on the coming Wednesday.
