As of: February 4, 2024, 4:50 p.m
By: Florian Naumann
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After a few months of delay, the time has now come: Dietmar Bartsch is resigning from the Left.
The reactions from the party are not everywhere exuberant.
Berlin – An era is ending on the Left: Dietmar Bartsch is giving up his position at the head of the Bundestag Left – after eight years.
Bartsch was even the opposition leader in the Bundestag during the grand coalition.
He had held high positions in the predecessor party, the PDS, since 1991.
However, his last years in office were overshadowed by serious crises on the left.
Most recently about the division between Wagenknecht supporters and parliamentarians loyal to the Left.
Bartsch is still chairman of the remaining left-wing group in the Bundestag.
“I will no longer stand for office at the parliamentary group meeting on February 19th and 20th,” he told the dpa on Sunday.
However, the step does not come as a surprise.
The 65-year-old had already announced his departure in August - but then changed his mind again in view of the break with his former co-party leader Sahra Wagenknecht.
Bartsch leaves the Left Bundestag leadership: Wissler and Schirdewan leave it at “recognition”
“After a difficult transition period, we have created a foundation with the now recognized group,” wrote Bartsch on the X platform (formerly Twitter).
He will support the new leadership with all his might.
The aim is to get back into the Bundestag with parliamentary strength in 2025 – and to “be THE social opposition”.
According to current survey data, at least the former could be a Herculean task.
Dietmar Bartsch and Janine Wissler at the Left Party conference in November in Augsburg.
© IMAGO/Chris Emil Janssen
Bartsch initially had to forego overly warm farewell words from the party leadership.
The two left-wing chairmen Janine Wissler and Martin Schirdewan simply told the dpa when asked: “Dietmar Bartsch has achieved a lot in the negotiations about the group status.
For this and for his years of work at the top of the parliamentary group, he deserves our thanks and recognition.”
Wissler and Schirdewan explained that they had been informed in advance about the withdrawal: “We took note of that with respect.”
Gysi says goodbye to Bartsch: “There is no second”
Gregor Gysi, a long-time left-wing companion, spoke in more detail.
Bartsch had “made immense contributions to our party in over 30 years,” he wrote on
“There is no other person who has led our party through its multiple crises so cleverly, calmly and decisively,” emphasized Gysi.
At the same time, he exercised optimism: “That’s far from it!” explained the former party leader with a view to the 2025 federal election.
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Dietmar Bartsch's political career in bullet points
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Federal treasurer of the PDS
from 1991 to 1997
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1997 to 2002 / 2005 to 2007
Federal Managing Director of the PDS
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Federal Managing Director of the Left
from 2007 to 2010
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2010 to 2015
parliamentary group deputy of the Left in the Bundestag
-
2015 to 2023
co-parliamentary leader of the Left in the Bundestag
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current:
Chairman of the Left Group in the Bundestag
Bartsch, who was born in Stralsund, was considered a representative of the pragmatic wing of the party.
Ultimately, however, his main task was to mediate between the sometimes irreconcilable groups in the faction - ultimately without success.
The former left-wing faction in the Bundestag dissolved in December after Sahra Wagenknecht and her colleagues split from the Left Party.
On Friday, the Bundestag recognized the members of the Left Party and the BSW (Alliance Sahra Wagenknecht) as parliamentary groups.
The 28 parliamentarians from the Left Party and the ten BSW MPs will now have more parliamentary rights than non-attached MPs, but fewer than the five parliamentary groups.
(
fn with material from AFP and dpa
)