Hans-Jochen Vogel, former leader of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) of Germany who was an unsuccessful candidate for chancellery against Helmut Kohl in 1983, died on Sunday July 26 at the age of 94. In a statement, the SPD praised a “ great social democrat ” who worked tirelessly for “ a just world and a unified Europe ”.
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Vogel, who began his political career in 1960 being elected mayor of Munich, the youngest to hold that office, marked political life in Germany for decades and has often been described as the " moral conscience " of the center-left. .
Enlisted in the Wehrmacht during World War II, he was captured by American forces. After the war, he joined the SPD after completing his law studies. As mayor of Munich, he played a leading role in securing and organizing the Olympic Games in the Bavarian capital in 1972.
Has Parkinson's disease
Continuing his career at the federal level, he became Minister of Regional Planning and Public Works, then Minister of Justice. In 1983, he was appointed by the SPD to be his candidate for chancellery, but he was defeated by his CDU rival (center-right) Helmut Kohl.
Vogel led the SPD from 1987 to 1991, a period marked by the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and German reunification completed in 1990. He was also head of the SPD parliamentary group in the Bundestag. Vogel retired from political life in 1994 and suffered from Parkinson's disease in recent years.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier paid tribute to a veteran of politics admired for his integrity and sense of duty. “ Hans-Jochen Vogel worked and fought for tolerance, respect and a peaceful society ,” he said.
