As of: April 8, 2024, 2:07 p.m
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Cem Özdemir (front) with Winfried Kretschmann (archive photo) © Julian Rettig/phototek/Imago
Key question in the country: Who will succeed Winfried Kretschmann? The Greens probably want to build up Cem Özdemir for the prime ministership.
Munich/Stuttgart –
Cem Özdemir doesn't have that many nice appointments as Federal Agriculture Minister, often whistles, posters, protests. He thinks back fondly to the performances in his homeland. In July, for example, 30,000 people celebrated him when he was driven around his hometown of Bad Urach in the historic festival carriage, even rumbling past his parents' house. “The most beautiful festival,” he exulted about the traditional “Shepherd’s Run”. Oh, if only it could always be like this.
Could it. In any case, Özdemir has the chance to return politically to his homeland, to the highest office in Baden-Württemberg. The Greens want to build him up to be the next Prime Minister, the successor to the popular Winfried Kretschmann, who was also in the Urach carriage. In 2026, after 15 years of service and almost 77 years of life, the Republic's first Green head of government no longer wants to run.
Yes, things are heading towards Özdemir, say green circles as well as prominent CDU members who are the small coalition partner in Baden-Württemberg. A determination, recently reported by
Bild
, is still officially denied. But the signs are clear: Özdemir spends a noticeable amount of time in the southwest. Noticeably close with Kretschmann. And strikingly harmonious with other potential applicants such as the young Finance Minister Danyal Bayaz (40), incidentally the partner of the Bavarian Green Party leader Katharina Schulze.
Cem Özdemir, the “Anatolian Swabian”
So everything is harmonious at the moment. And the schedule is also set, enforced by electoral law. It should be after the European elections in June, but not long after that. Özdemir is currently a federal minister and member of parliament in Berlin. If he really wants to move to the state, he can hardly stand again in the federal election (at the latest) in autumn 2025. He will probably announce his plans before the summer break and make room for a new candidate. The bar is set high: Özdemir achieved a whopping 40 percent in Stuttgart in 2021, the best green result in all of Germany.
For the time being, the 58-year-old is keeping a low profile. “There is no new status. Winfried Kretschmann is a great Prime Minister, and I have one of the most exciting jobs there is in the federal government.” Even close observers of southwest state politics have been expecting the change for months. And we say clearly: No, the Turkish background – Özdemir calls himself an “Anatolian Swabian” – hardly concerns any voter.
In terms of content, the Kretschmann/Özdemir change would probably not be a break
In terms of content, the Kretschmann/Özdemir change would probably not be a break. The old man is considered a pragmatist who coordinates more closely with his Union colleagues before meetings of the Prime Minister than with the SPD. The new guy sits in the traffic light government, having been brought into the cabinet at the last minute instead of Bayern's Anton Hofreiter, but he is also not considered a left-winger among the Greens.
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There is one obstacle, however: the polls. In the last few months, the CDU in the 30s has always been well ahead of the Greens in the 20s. In the 2021 election it was the other way around. This looks more like a change in the “State Ministry” (that’s what the State Chancellery is called there). The Union also wants to deny Özdemir an official bonus.
The young CDU parliamentary group leader Manuel Hagel (35), who will probably be the top candidate, is clearly not taking part in an early election of the Prime Minister during the current legislative period. The only conceivable exception would be a serious illness on Kretschmann's part. But he is quite lively, even if he is a little more cautious due to his age.
For the Greens, this is one of the most important personal details nationwide
For the Greens, this is one of the most important personal details nationwide, as it concerns the only Prime Minister. Meanwhile, another debate is slowly starting to get underway in the background: the question of the candidate for chancellor. Bild
am Sonntag
reports on a new edition of a rivalry between Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock. Both are interested in running for office in 2025.
“After Annalena's stumbling election campaign, Robert thinks it's his turn,” the newspaper quotes an “insider.” An agreement is needed by the end of the year at the latest. A member decision on both is also seen as a solution.
However, there is also a demographic damper with this personality: Nationwide, the Greens are at 13 percent, behind the Union (31), SPD (15) and AfD (19).