From the background into the plenary hall? Until now, SPD politician Wolfgang Schmidt was Olaf Scholz’s closest confidant. Now he wants to become a member of the Bundestag.
Wolfgang Schmidt is considered loyal, especially to Chancellor Olaf Scholz. The two were political companions for a long time. Schmidt has been Federal Minister for Special Tasks and Head of the Federal Chancellery since December 2021, but now he wants to take the next step in his career. The 53-year-old could soon enter the Bundestag via the Eimsbüttel district in his hometown of Hamburg. Last Wednesday evening, the district executive board unanimously voted for Schmidt as a direct candidate in next year’s federal election.
In a letter from SPD district chairman Milan Pein to the members of the SPD Eimsbüttel, it says that they believe the experienced Schmidt has a good chance of winning the constituency. Schmidt is the successor to Niels Annen. As the German Press Agency reported at the end of July, he decided to withdraw from federal politics. The SPD Eimsbüttel sees Wolfgang Schmidt as the ideal successor. “He is not only a committed campaigner for social democracy, but also a clever political mind,” said Milan Pein in a letter to the SPD Eimsbüttel.
Who will be Schmidt’s opponent?
Wolfgang Schmidt also wrote a letter to party members in his new constituency to encourage support for his candidacy. In it, the Hamburg native also promised that if he won, he would look for an apartment in Eimsbüttel. Active and committed constituency work is possible despite being a member of the federal government, says Schmidt.
Who Schmidt’s main opponent will be will probably be decided on September 21st. That is when the next district meeting of the Eimsbüttler Greens will take place. In the last federal election, Niels Annen narrowly lost the race in the constituency to the Green Till Steffen. In 2025, Wolfgang Schmidt wants to be ahead.
Sources: Letters from Wolfgang Schmidt and the SPD district chairman Milan Pein to the members of the SPD Eimsbüttel, DPA, ,
Source: Stern
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