Party congress: Dürr elected FDP boss – Lindner goes with a heavy coronary heart | EUROtoday

After the debacle within the Bundestag election, the FDP initiated its renewal course of. A celebration convention in Berlin elected the previous parliamentary group chief Christian Dürr with 82 p.c of the delegate votes as the brand new federal chairman. He replaces Christian Lindner, who as a consequence from failure on the 5 p.c clause within the Bundestag election on February 23. 505 of the 614 legitimate votes have been on Dürr, who competed with out opposing candidates. There have been 82 votes in favor and 27 abstentions.

Dürr will lead the FDP again to the Bundestag in 4 years. However, his first take a look at would be the state election in Baden-Württemberg in March subsequent 12 months, which the liberals see as their mainland.

The former Vice President of the Bundestag, Wolfgang Kubicki (69 p.c), MEP Svenja Hahn (76 p.c) and the North Rhine-Westphalian FDP state chairman Henning Hönen (76 p.c) have been elected as deputy celebration leaders. The delegates additionally confirmed Federal Treasurer Michael Link in workplace (95 p.c). Other necessary elections, particularly that of a brand new normal secretary, needed to be postponed to Saturday as a result of the pronunciation on Lindner’s accountability report had taken for much longer than deliberate.

Dürr desires a brand new fundamental program and celebration reform

Before his election, Dürr introduced that he needed to have a brand new fundamental program developed and a reform of the buildings and processes within the FDP. “I want us to be the most modern party in Germany in terms of content. But I want us to be the most modern party in the Federal Republic of Germany.” The new program shouldn’t restrict itself to the fundamental, however fairly translate the liberal targets and beliefs into the concrete actuality of life of individuals. The working title might be “freedom of freedom”.

Dürr known as on his celebration to maintain the fundamental beliefs. When selecting, the extremes have been the radiant winners, all – together with the FDP – ought to due to this fact query themselves. “But the answer cannot be that you throw all beliefs overboard after the Bundestag election.”

Lindner assaults authorities Merz to say goodbye

In his farewell speech celebrated with 5 -minute applause, Lindner attacked the brand new federal authorities and Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU). It is nice for Germany that the Bundestag election had made a directional determination. “In paradoxically, the Merz government hit a different direction than the voters had specified,” mentioned Lindner. “The voters have chosen majority: much less state and extra freedom.

Debate in regards to the future course of the FDP

Lindner vehemently spoke out in opposition to a change in fact in response to the election defeat. “Some advise us to change the location in the political landscape. My advice is not,” he mentioned. “The future of the FDP is not in a swivel to the left or right. It is in a political and personnel renewal.”

Former Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann additionally warned earlier than approaching. “The appearance of cooperating with right -wing extremists damages the soul of a liberal party. (…) Anyone who wants to lead the FDP to the right leads them into the demise.”

Dürr mentioned that some now gave the FDP the recommendation that it ought to transfer to the best and “somehow become conservative”. Others mentioned that financial liberalism had lengthy since overtaken. “This siren call – we hear them, but we don’t follow them.”

FDP additionally beneath stress within the federal states

In the Bundestag election on February 23, the FDP had solely introduced 4.3 p.c of the second votes and has not been represented within the Bundestag since then. This was already the case from 2013 to 2017. At that point, Lindner had led the celebration again to the Bundestag after which in 2021 to the federal authorities with the SPD and the Greens, which broke early. At the state degree, too, it seems to be dangerous for the liberals: they solely sit in 8 out of 16 state parliament.

Previous celebration vice Vogel sees the existence -threatening state of affairs

The vice celebration chief Johannes Vogel, who was additionally divorced from the workplace, now sees the liberals in a battle for survival. They didn’t come again to the Bundestag for the second time of their historical past, he mentioned on the opening of the celebration congress. “This is an existential cut. But this party lives.” Much is totally different right now than in 2013, mentioned Vogel. “But something gives us strength and orientation. Namely that we have already mastered it as a party. That shows: it is possible.”

Lindner mentioned the celebration convention might really feel like a zero level for a lot of liberals. But: “He is just a new beginning for this great free democratic party.”

Lindner thanks FDP for “great trip”

Lindner acquired a very good 5 minutes of enthusiastic applause for his speech, which visibly moved him. The farewell is just not simple for him, he confessed. He drew a optimistic document of his over eleven years on the head of the FDP. “I look back on a great trip with you. And I’m deeply grateful for that,” he mentioned to the delegates. Many of them then thanked him within the pronunciation.

No essential evaluation of the election debacle

Lindner didn’t present a essential evaluation of the explanations for the election debacle. He solely spoke of errors and lack of approval and credibility within the site visitors mild coalition. “We will work this out under a new party leadership to learn from it.” With a view to the three years on the site visitors mild, Lindner additionally mentioned: “We did a government responsibility, which was possible in the constellation. Incidentally, that was not that little.”

A billing of the bottom with the celebration management because of the disastrous Bundestag election was additionally within the pronunciation of Lindner’s speech. One of the few essential voices got here from the Berlin delegate Karoline Preisler. “The old FDP leadership failed,” she mentioned. “You are responsible, just you.”