US EditionCem Ozdemir, Germany's Turkish-Heritage Political Star
Cem Özdemir won the Stuttgart constituency with the highest vote share among Greens, marking a historic achievement for a politician of Turkish heritage in Baden-Württemberg.
- On Sunday, the Green Party, led by its top candidate in Baden-Württemberg, overcame poll deficits with almost 32 percent of the vote while the CDU trailed near 30 percent.
- Having served in the European Parliament from 2004 to 2009 and as co-chair of the Greens from 2008 to 2018, Özdemir joined the Greens in 1981 and was elected to the Bundestag in 1994 at age 30.
- In 2021 Özdemir became agriculture minister, the first government minister with Turkish roots, and won his Stuttgart seat with the Greens' best result, criticizing Putin and Erdoğan.
- After years in the spotlight, Cem Özdemir has faced repeated backlash, including AfD lawmakers telling him to 'go home' in 2018 and a bonus air miles scandal forcing him to step down.
- His rise positions Özdemir as a bridge between representation and regional governance, with his foreign-policy expertise and multilingual skills helping him win broad respect among the electorate in Baden-Württemberg.
57 Articles
57 Articles
Özdemir's election victory provides for discussions: Is distance to the federal party the key to success or a problem for the Greens?
Cem Özdemir had to fight a stony path in politics. However, the Green politician has mastered his path and was even Federal Minister. Now he wants to become Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg. His party scored points in the state parliament election.
The triumph of Cem Özdemir is also due to a special course of the Bundesspitze. But this is precisely why such a success is unlikely to be reproduced elsewhere.
Cem Özdemir triumphs in Baden-Württemberg in a remarkable way: he puts basic rules of politics on his head. His party may be disturbed.
Cem Özdemir and Manuel Hagel are fighting to succeed Winfried Kretschmann. Read all developments in the live ticker.
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