Annalena Baerbock will not run again as the Green Party’s candidate for chancellor. She announced this publicly on the US broadcaster CNN. The first Greens are reacting to the decision.
Annalena Baerbock wants to concentrate fully on her office as Foreign Minister and is not seeking another Green Party candidacy for chancellor. Instead of being tied down in a candidacy for chancellor, she wants to devote her energy fully to her current task in view of the international crises, the Green Party politician explained in an interview with the US television channel CNN on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Washington.
“The world is obviously very different from what it was at the last federal election,” Baerbock said, according to an official translation by the Foreign Office in Berlin. “In light of the Russian war of aggression and now also the dramatic situation in the Middle East, we need more, not less, diplomacy. Otherwise, others will fill the gap,” she added.
Baerbock added in the interview conducted by CNN journalist Christiane Amanpour: “Therefore, in these extreme times, state political responsibility as Foreign Minister means for me: instead of being tied up in a candidacy for chancellor, continuing to devote my energy fully to my task of building trust, cooperation and reliable structures – for and with so many partners worldwide and in Europe who rely on them.”
Baerbock wants to do everything to support her party
Baerbock, who had agreed with current Vice Chancellor and Economics Minister Robert Habeck before the 2021 federal election to run as the Green Party’s candidate for chancellor, also assured: “Of course I will do everything I can in the election campaign to support my party, just as I did last time.”
Case of Melis Sekmen
These politicians have changed faction and party
It has been clear for some time that either Baerbock or Vice Chancellor and Economics Minister Robert Habeck would lead the Greens into the next federal election campaign. Habeck’s desire to run has been clear for months, even if he has not said so clearly so far. How could he? After all, there is still Baerbock.
Greens wanted to avoid deadlock
In the spring, those close to the party said they wanted to stick to the candidate nomination procedure agreed two and a half years ago. In September 2022, the board decided that the party base should decide in a primary election if there were several promising candidates.
But they wanted to avoid a deadlock, possibly played out in public. Top Greens always hoped that the two former party leaders would come to an amicable agreement.
Robert Habeck and the candidacy for chancellor
Habeck was cautious in the evening when asked whether he would now declare his candidacy for chancellor. He said that Baerbock had ensured that Germany had been and continues to be a factor of stability in foreign policy in recent years – Baerbock is doing an excellent job as foreign minister. “We will discuss everything else in the committees and announce the right decisions in good time.”
The two parliamentary group leaders of the Greens in the Bundestag, Katharina Dröge and Britta Haßelmann, each explained on X that it was responsible for Baerbock to concentrate on foreign policy during this time. They also praised Baerbock for her “team play”. “That’s good, for our country and for us Greens,” wrote Haßelmann.
Party leaders Omid Nouripour and Ricarda Lang expressed similar views: “That’s Annalena Baerbock, and that’s how we value her: with responsibility for the whole and as a team player.” Thanks to Baerbock, Germany is a reliable partner in the world. “Right now, Germany needs a committed foreign minister like Annalena Baerbock.” They also said: “We will decide everything else at the appropriate time.”
Baerbock is still young for a politician
If Baerbock had insisted on running, a power struggle with Habeck would have been almost unavoidable. This raises the question: how much trouble, how much political capital is such a fight worth? And that especially for a party that is currently only polling between 11 and 13 percent?
At the moment, it seems unlikely that the next chancellor (or the next chancellor) could have a Green Party membership card. But there will always be another time. And at 43, Baerbock is young for a politician – perhaps that also explains her decision not to run.
Note: This article has been updated several times.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
