Klingbeil: Scholz will lead SPD as chancellor candidate in Bundestag election campaign
"The 15 percent in the federal government, yes, they're real and they hurt too," said Klingbeil in an interview with the show "Report from Berlin". The SPD leader emphasized that it was "a difficult time". There are uncertainties, wars, and crises. "There's a lot of uncertainty that's spreading across the country." This is also reflected in the dissatisfaction with the traffic light government - "you can't dance around that".
"Everything must be done now to ensure that the federal election, which we will have in 13 months, turns out differently," emphasized Klingbeil. The SPD will show that it can fight. Scholz will be "leading the way," said the SPD leader. But the election next year "won't be a given".
In a poll by the Forsa institute at the end of July, only a third of SPD members said they still thought Scholz was the right candidate for chancellor. Just as many spoke out for Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.
Scholz himself has made it clear that he will run again as chancellor candidate. "I will run for Chancellor again," he said at his press conference before the summer break. A journalist had asked him if he wouldn't follow the example of US President Joe Biden and waive a renewed candidacy.
The SPD, led by Klingbeil, is determined to change the trajectory of the federal election in 13 months, aiming for a better outcome than the current traffic light government. Despite Scholz's intention to run again as the SPD's chancellor candidate, his support within the party has seen a significant decrease, with only a third of SPD members still backing him.
