2024-08-27 12:32:32
State elections are coming up in Saxony. The Social Democrats are putting forward an incumbent minister as their top candidate.
The SPD is part of the government at the federal level and in Saxony. But the polls in both Berlin and Dresden do not bode well. In the Free State, the SPD is just above the five percent hurdle.
Petra Köpping, currently state minister in Michael Kretschmer’s (CDU) cabinet, is running for the Social Democrats. t-online provides an overview of the most important information about the politician:
Profession: Minister of State for Social Affairs and Social Cohesion in Saxony, previously member of the Saxon State Parliament and Mayor
Birthday: June 12, 1958
Place of birth: Nordhausen (Thuringia)
Marital status: Married, three children from previous marriage
Vocational training: Political science and law
Petra Köpping often addresses the differences in social and economic development between East and West Germany and calls for equalization of living conditions. In her book “Integrate us first!” Köpping addressed the neglect of the East German population in the years following reunification. She therefore calls for greater consideration of East German interests in politics.
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As Minister of State for Integration, she has also initiated various programs to promote the integration of migrants in Saxony.
Köpping has been active in politics since the 1980s. She joined the SED in 1986 and left again after less than three years. By leaving, she initially feared that she would lose her post as mayor of Größpösna, which she had only recently taken up, as she herself states on her website. But she remained in office until the local elections in 1990, in which she did not stand for re-election.
A few years later, in reunified Germany, she returned to the office of mayor as an independent, holding it from 1994 to 2001. She then became district administrator in the Leipzig region and joined the SPD in 2002.
Köpping gained nationwide fame through her work as Minister of State for Equality and Integration in Saxony from 2014. She has been Minister of State for Social Affairs and Social Cohesion in Saxony since 2019. That year, Köpping also unsuccessfully applied for the SPD party chairmanship with current Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.
Köpping wants to strengthen Saxony’s education by providing more support in daycare centers and more staff in schools. She also wants to invest in hospitals and maintain existing locations.
The Social Democrat also promises free childcare, support for single parents and affordable housing. She also announces a committed fight against right-wing extremism.
During the Corona pandemic in April 2020, the MDR reported that Köpping’s ministry had developed a plan according to which people who resisted quarantine could also be placed in psychiatric hospitals. This led to right-wing extremist demonstrations, including in front of Köpping’s home. The police had to intervene.
In autumn 2023, Köpping came under pressure when an audit report by the Saxon Court of Auditors confirmed that her ministry had problems in allocating funding. The report mentioned, among other things, “unacceptable personal connections” and “structures at risk of corruption”. Köpping later explained that the funding guidelines had been fundamentally revised and that funding decisions had been placed with the Saxon Development Bank (SAB). The administration’s employees had received training. “We made mistakes, we corrected them,” said Köpping.