Franz Müntefering

Franz Müntefering (born in Neheim, today part of Arnsberg, on January 16, 1940) is a German politician who was Vice Chancellor (2005-2007) and Minister of Labor of Germany, as well as Chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) between 2008 and 2009.

Political career

Trajectory in the party (1966-2005)

Müntefering joined the SPD in 1966 and was a member of the Bundestag (federal parliament) from 1975 to 1992, and again from 1998. From 1995 to 1998 he was a member of the Landtag i> (regional parliament) of North Rhine-Westphalia.

He was federal manager of the SPD between 1995 and 1998 and the first to take the post of general secretary between 1999 and 2002, becoming at the same time the spokesman for the Social Democratic group in the Bundestag. In March 2004 he succeeded Gerhard Schröder as party chairman. On the 2005 election campaign, he was notable for comparing high-risk investors to "a plague of locusts," sparking an angry national debate about liberal capitalism. However, after the September 2005 elections, Müntefering was one of the architects of the Grand Coalition between his party and the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU). He was appointed Second Vice Chancellor, (First Vice Chancellor was Steinmeier) and Minister of Labor and Social Affairs in Angela Merkel's cabinet. Since then, Müntefering has emerged as one of the most convinced supporters of the SPD's participation in the Grand Coalition, following his own argument (also voiced in the 2005 campaign) that "being in opposition sucks" #3. 4;.

In November 2005, failing to get the SPD leadership to appoint their favorite candidate, Kajo Wasserhövel, as party general secretary, Müntefering resigned as party chairman and was succeeded by Matthias Platzeck.

Activity as Minister of Labor and retirement from politics (2005-2007)

In his post as Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Müntefering raised the retirement age from 65 to 67. In addition, he defends the introduction of a minimum wage in Germany. However, this measure has so far been blocked by the CDU, which is why, in June 2007, Müntefering came to question the future of the grand coalition for the first time.

In October 2007, Müntefering confronted his party chairman Kurt Beck, who had endorsed the demand to extend the primary benefit for the unemployed over 50, something that would partially repeal one of the most important economic reforms of the time of Gerhard Schröder. However, the leadership of the SPD supported Beck's position, in what was considered a turn to the left of this party and a clear defeat of Müntefering in his role as "guardian" of the Schröderian reforms. (Even Schröder himself went so far as to mock Müntefering by saying that "Agenda 2010 [economic and social reforms] are not the Ten Commandments and no one who participated in it should be considered Moses".)

A few weeks later, Müntefering suffered another setback, when the CDU first hinted that it might agree to the introduction of a minimum wage for the postal sector (which is about to be liberalized in Germany), though it later backed down. of a night of negotiations between Merkel, Beck and Müntefering. Then, in what was considered the worst crisis of the Grand Coalition up to then, both Beck and Müntefering reproached the CDU for "breaking their word."

A few days later, on November 13, 2007, Franz Müntefering resigned from his position as Vice Chancellor and Minister of Labor and Social Affairs. For this, he argued strictly family and compelling reasons, such as the serious illness of his wife, who suffered from cancer. His withdrawal became effective on November 21, 2007. His successor as Minister of Labor and Social Affairs was Olaf Scholz (SPD), while Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier (SPD) was appointed vice Chancellor.

New election for the party presidency

After the death of his wife in July 2008, Müntefering gave his first signs of being interested in a return to political life. This coincided with a crisis for Kurt Beck, who was criticized by several members of the party for his lack of leadership. When in September 2008, the party leadership decided to nominate Frank-Walter Steinmeier as the main candidate for the 2009 federal elections, Beck decided to resign as party chairman. Subsequently, the SPD leadership decided to propose again the election of Müntefering as SPD president, which was ratified in October 2008 at an extraordinary party congress.

But after the defeat of the SPD in the 2009 federal elections, Müntefering resigned from his post as party chairman, and his successor Sigmar Gabriel was elected.