Former-German Vice Chancellor announces departure from politics
(MENAFN) Former German Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck, a previous co-leader of the Green Party, has announced his departure from active politics, cautioning that mainstream party dominance in Germany could soon come to an end. Habeck told a newspaper that he plans to relinquish his Bundestag mandate next Monday.
“Politically viable democratic alternatives are lacking… A new approach is needed, and I cannot find that within the system I helped shape over the past 20 years,” he explained.
Habeck’s comments come in the wake of the collapse of Germany’s traffic-light coalition—comprising the Greens, the Social Democratic Party (SPD), and the Free Democratic Party (FDP)—in November 2024, which broke down over disagreements on addressing a multibillion-euro deficit in the 2025 budget. Critics have partially blamed him for the country’s ongoing economic struggles.
The former minister stated that he plans to spend the next year abroad to “distance myself from the overly restrictive corset of Berlin’s political system.” Habeck said he will engage in research, teaching, and learning at institutions in Denmark, Sweden, and the United States.
He emphasized that this move does not represent a complete retreat from politics, promising to continue sharing his views via Instagram videos.
In Germany’s snap elections on February 23, Habeck’s Green Party received about 12% of the vote, while the SPD slightly outperformed them with 16.5%—its worst result since World War II. The FDP barely crossed the 4.7% threshold to enter parliament, and its leader subsequently left politics.
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