CDU and SPD select top personnel for NRW election

Created: 02/19/2022Updated: 02/19/2022 13:37

Thomas Kuchaty (SPD) speaks.

© Fabian Strauch/dpa/archive image

In North Rhine-Westphalia, two men are fighting for the office of prime minister.

Incumbent Hendrik Wüst and SPD challenger Thomas Kutschaty are now officially the top candidates of their parties.

Düsseldorf - Hendrik Wüst versus Thomas Kutschaty: Three months before the state elections in North Rhine-Westphalia, the CDU and SPD have chosen their top candidates.

The NRW-CDU elected the incumbent Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst on Saturday with 99.1 percent to place one on the state list for the election on May 15th.

At a meeting in Essen, the 46-year-old libertine received 233 yes and two no votes from 235 votes cast.

In the case of the SPD, the NRW party leader and leader of the state parliament, Thomas Kutschaty, came up with 96.86 percent.

At a digital party conference, the 53-year-old former state justice minister received 432 of 446 votes cast.

Nine delegates voted no and five abstained.

The general secretary of the NRW-CDU, Josef Hovenjürgen, said about the election result of Wüst: "That should be tailwind for May 15." Wüst had achieved the best result of a top candidate of the NRW-CDU at least since the year 2000.

Wüst announced a short but intensive election campaign after Easter.

"People in North Rhine-Westphalia expect us to get them out of the pandemic," he said.

“They have no understanding for election campaigns these weeks.” The state party leader wants to discuss ideas and suggestions with CDU members in digital topic forums over the next few weeks.

The NRW-CDU will then present its program for the future.

SPD challenger Kuchaty described his own voting result as a “dream result”.

"Now I'm hot too, now I want to campaign together with you to convince the people in North Rhine-Westphalia." Kuchaty, who is also deputy SPD federal chairman, promised more social justice for NRW in his speech, which lasted around 40 minutes .

"I want to become Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia," said Kuchaty.

The SPD in the most populous federal state is back.

"I'm ready to take responsibility and make decisions, even difficult ones."

Unlike the CDU, the NRW-SPD wanted to decide on their election program on Saturday, which they have already titled "government program".

A black-yellow coalition has governed NRW since 2017.

According to surveys, the CDU and SPD are currently roughly on par in NRW.

Wüst took over the office of Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia at the end of October after his predecessor Armin Laschet failed as a candidate for Union Chancellor in the federal elections.

more on the subject

Wüst and Dobrindt demonstrate solidarity

NRW election: CDU board nominates Wüst as top candidate

FDP decides program: commitment to black and yellow

Kuschaty received support at the party conference from Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and Health Minister Karl Lauterbach.

According to Scholz, NRW faces major challenges.

The most populous federal state, like Germany, must be governed differently and needs a change, he said in a pre-recorded greeting.

In her greeting, the Rhineland-Palatinate Prime Minister Malu Dreyer (SPD) referred to the tailwind that the NRW-SPD had received from the victory of the Social Democrats in the federal elections.

"As the SPD, we have decided to build on the strong year 2021," she said, also referring to the SPD's success in the elections in Rhineland-Palatinate.

dpa