SPD - Saskia Esken wants to run for the Bundestag again in 2025
The SPD chairperson Saskia Esken will run again for the Bundestag in 2025. The German Press Agency (DPA) confirmed her intentions at the Willy-Brandt-House on Thursday. Previously, the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" had reported this.
Before the latest Bundestag election, Esken told the newspaper in October 2020 that she would run again for the Bundestag - "but then I'm out." The fact that the SPD chairperson is now seeking another legislative term in 2025 caused criticism in her constituency Calw, Baden-Württemberg: Manfred Stehle, according to the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" a member of the SPD district association Calw, spoke to the newspaper about a "clear breach of promise." Esken not only damages her personal credibility but also harms the SPD, for which she bears a special responsibility as its co-chair.
The SPD politician has been a member of the Bundestag since 2013. In 2021, she entered parliament as the leading candidate of her party in Baden-Württemberg via the state list - the direct mandate in her constituency went to the CDU politician Klaus Mack.
SZ report 2020 Current SZ report
- Saskia Esken, the chairperson of Germany's SPD, announced her intention to run in the 2025 Federal election, confirming reports made by the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" and later corroborated by the German Press Agency at the Willy-Brandt-House.
- Amid criticism in her constituency Calw, Baden-Württemberg, Saskia Esken, the SPD's co-chair and a Bundestag member since 2013, defended her decision to seek another legislative term, despite previously stating that she would step down after the previous election.
- In the 2021 Federal election, Saskia Esken entered the Bundestag as the leading candidate of her party in Baden-Württemberg via the state list, while the direct mandate in her Calw constituency went to the CDU's Klaus Mack.
- The announcement of Esken's plans to run again in 2025 sparked controversy, with Manfred Stehle, a member of the SPD district association in Calw, accusing her of breaking a promise in an interview with the "Süddeutsche Zeitung."
- Despite the backlash, Esken's continued involvement in German politics and her role as SPD co-chair may shape the landscape of parties in the Bundestag leading up to the 2025 Federal election.
