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Seeheimer Kreis | |
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| Foundation | 1974; 52 years ago (1974) |
| National affiliation | SPD |
| Spokesperson | |
| Ideology | Economic liberalism |
| Political position | Centre |
| Website | seeheimer-kreis.de |
TheSeeheimer Kreis (German pronunciation:[ˈzeːˌhaɪ̯.mɐkʁaɪ̯s]ⓘ;English: "Seeheim Circle") is an official internal grouping in theSocial Democratic Party of Germany (SPD).[1] The group describes itself as "undogmatic and pragmatic" and generally takes moderatelyliberal economic positions.
It was founded in September 1974.[1] One of the prominent founding members isGesine Schwan,[1] a former SPD candidate for theGerman presidency. As of 2022[update], the group's spokespeople areMarja-Liisa Völlers,Dirk Wiese, andUwe Schmidt.[2] The Circle is named after its long-standing meeting place,Seeheim (Bergstraße), just south ofFrankfurt.
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In the 1950s, a group of conservative or traditional members of the SPD met regularly in an informal group known as theKanalarbeiter (Canal Workers). They were considered to be one of the most influential groups within the larger Social Democratic Party.
The most prominent members of the Canal Workers wereEgon Franke andAnnemarie Renger.
Parallel to the development of the Canal Workers, an additional conservative grouping within the SPD was initiated in 1969 by Günther Metzger, known as the Metzger Circle, which soon developed in 1972 into the Arbeitskreis Linke Mitte (Centre Left Work Circle), which can be considered the forerunner of today's Seeheim Circle.In the course of the late 1960s theJusos, the youth organization of the Social Democrats, the left wing of the SPD increased in influence and numbers.
A meeting in the Dorint-Hotel inLahnstein in December 1974 is considered to be the official founding of the Seeheim Circle; however, already in 1973 a group of around 40 Social Democrats met at the invitation ofHans-Jochen Vogel to discuss a way to come out of the theoretical and ideological predicament posed by the left wing of the party. Other founding members includeRichard Löwenthal and Gesine Schwan. Though the Seeheim Circle ended up not accomplishing their initially stated goal of serving as a provocative ideological counterweight within the Party, they experienced early successes in gaining influence in SPD staffing policy and in pushing through broader Social Democratic Party decisions. The early Seeheimers followed in the footsteps of the Canal Workers, whose motto was "nothing happens without us".
From 1978 to 1984, the group, which was also known as the Lahnstein Circle, met in theLufthansa Training Centre inSeeheim on the Bergstraße, the origin of the name "Seeheimers."
Between 1974 and 1982, ChancellorHelmut Schmidt included several Seeheimers in his Cabinet, who had supported him during the debates in the party about the industrial use ofnuclear energy and theNATO Double-Track Decision. After the end of the Helmut Schmidt Era, the Kanalarbeiter, who had represented the interests of traditional, non-intellectual union workers, definitively merged with the Seeheim Circle, which in contrast was considered to be "intellectual." During conflicts during the 1980s within the Social Democrats about the direction of the party, the Seeheim Circle opposed the alliance between the Social Democrats andAlliance '90/The Greens. The Seeheimers also distinguished themselves during this period from other currents within the SPD by supporting reunification with East Germany as a political goal.[citation needed] Afterreunification with East Germany in 1990, the Seeheimers added two prominent Social Democrats from the formerGDR to their ranks, Stephan Hilsberg andMarkus Meckel. During the 1998–2005 chancellorship ofGerhard Schröder, the Seeheimers supported hischanges to social services.
The Circle is led bySiemtje Möller, Dirk Wiese, andDagmar Ziegler. Other leading members of the Seeheimer areDoris Barnett, Fritz-Rudolf Körper, Edgar Franke, Sport Committee Chairwoman Dagmar Freitag,Carsten Schneider, who belong to a group known as the Sprecherkreis. Members of the advisory board for the Seeheimer includeSigmar Gabriel andUlla Schmidt. Previous members have includedRolf Schwanitz,Thomas Oppermann andWolfgang Tiefensee.[2]
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The Seeheim Circle focuses on pragmatic solutions in social policy, financial policy, and economic policy. The party strives to align social welfare with financial possibilities, a commitment to give and take in social welfare, a reduction of the national debt, the necessity of reforms through pragmatic handling, and an open minded relationship to globalization. Moreover, the Seeheim Circle views demographic change as a central policy field and is ready to take social policy in directions which could lie outside of Social Democratic tradition. However, this readiness for innovation would not contradict the Party Program of the Social Democrats.
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