Scholz gets preference

Pistorius ends power struggle for chancellor in the SPD

According to opinion polls, Pistorius is much more popular than Scholz.(Bild: AFP/John MACDOUGALL)

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has declared in a video to SPD members that he is not available as a candidate for chancellor. He had previously been put forward by parts of the party as a replacement for the ailing Olaf Scholz.

"Olaf Scholz is the right candidate for chancellor," he said in a video message on Thursday. He had not put himself forward as a candidate. Scholz stands for what is needed now, namely experience and prudence. He called on the party members to back Scholz.

He would go into the election campaign together with the party. Pistorius emphasized that he was looking forward to a second term as Minister of Defense. "Let's fight together and united for a second term in office for the Social Democratic Chancellor Olaf Scholz."

After a controversial public debate, the way is now clear for Chancellor Olaf Scholz to run for chancellor again. According to the Deutsche Presse-Agentur, the nomination will be made at a meeting of the party executive on Monday.

Scholz could not convince
After the break-up of the traffic light coalition, an increasingly loud debate had developed within the SPD as to whether it would not be better to go into the race with Pistorius. In view of his significantly higher popularity ratings and presumed better election chances, more and more SPD politicians at local, state and national level had openly spoken out in his favor.

The SPD leadership had backed Scholz, but initially refrained from nominating him as a candidate for chancellor after the decision to hold a new election on February 23. The public debate began with a statement by SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich that there was "grumbling" in the party on the K issue.

The SPD plummeted in the polls:

Defense Minister allowed speculation
Pistorius made no attempt to stop it for days. On the contrary: "In politics, you should never rule anything out, no matter what it's about," the SPD politician said as recently as Monday at an event organized by the Bavarian media group in Passau.

"The only thing I can definitely rule out is becoming pope," he added with a wink. However, Pistorius then went on to say about running for chancellor: "It's not in my life plans and, to be honest, it doesn't have to be."

Scholz himself had already declared his ambition in July, when the break-up of the traffic light coalition was still a long way off: "I will run for chancellor to become chancellor again," he said at the time. In the past few days, he has not repeated this so clearly - obviously to avoid giving the impression that he wants to be elected himself.