From politics to business: Former SPD leader Sigmar Gabriel has been a favorite for weeks for the presidency of the powerful automobile association VDA. The manager magazin had reported about it earlier this month. According to information from the "Bild am Sonntag", there are now more details on the timing.
Read the SPIEGEL cover story here: "Is the German auto industry still to save?"
Next week, the VDA presidium wants to clarify details with Gabriel, reports the newspaper. At the same time there are also discussions with a candidate of the CDU: Hildegard Müller, once Minister of State at the Chancellery and top manager of an energy company. However, she would only be granted outsider opportunities.
"The order is fixed," according to "Bild am Sonntag" from informed circles. "If no unbridgeable differences with Gabriel occur, he will be the new president," the newspaper quoted its source. Another top manager said that Gabriel was 99 percent sure. He is the desired candidate of the car companies.
FAZ: Companies still in the clinch
According to a report of the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntag", the race between Gabriel and Müller is still open. Those who are given preference by the two, the corporations would still be in the clinch. The formal decision is made by the VDA board in the first week of November.
Gabriel announced only a few weeks ago, in November to resign his parliamentary mandate prematurely. The most important reason for this was the feeling that "at the age of 60, I have another chance to start something new", he explained his withdrawal in a letter to "friends and companions".
Gabriel is regarded as a political figure, who repeatedly grappled with the auto industry. Among other things, he sat as Prime Minister of Lower Saxony at the turn of the millennium in the Volkswagen Supervisory Board.
Gabriel was chairman of the SPD from 2009 to 2017. He was also environment, economic and foreign minister. Since 2005 he sits in the Bundestag. Recently, it had repeatedly criticized the fact that the politician because of his numerous sideline activities, his deputy mandate is no longer sufficiently. The former VDA boss Bernhard Mattes had announced his resignation at the end of September.
