NRW SPD wants to nominate Jochen Ott as lead candidate for the 2027 state election

Ott as challenger to Minister-President Wüst

The 52-year-old Ott is indeed the opposition leader in the state parliament, but so far he is less well known statewide. By the election, the education expert, who is challenging Minister-President Hendrik Wüst (CDU), who has been in office since 2022, is expected to raise his profile. At the party convention, the delegates must not only decide on the lead candidacy, but also on the order of the state list with which the SPD will go into the election campaign.

The personnel decision comes at a phase in which state politics in North Rhine-Westphalia is under pressure from several issues running in parallel. The North Rhine-Westphalian Higher Administrative Court (OVG) in Münster declared the Regional Plan Ruhr completely invalid on Friday. The surprising decision was justified by massive planning errors. In the case, it had actually only been about regulations on the extraction of sand and gravel in the Lower Rhine.

OVG ruling on the Regional Plan Ruhr aggravates the situation

As a consequence of the ruling, plans for housing construction and wind energy, for example, are now also in jeopardy. This aggravates the political situation for the black-green state government shortly before the SPD's official start of the election campaign. The opposition accuses the government of failures in land-use planning; the coalition points to ongoing proceedings and to the importance of the Ruhr area as the most populous region in the state.

According to the party, Ott is supported by a broad alliance of district associations and working groups, which also wants to tie substantive priorities to the candidacy at the delegates' conference. According to the party, these include the issues of education, internal security, and affordable housing. The SPD hopes that the drawing up of the state list will send a signal of unity, after poll figures had fallen steadily in recent months.

Broad alliance and substantive priorities

Even if the outcome of the delegates' conference is considered certain, the mood in the hall and the programmatic accents associated with the candidacy will be the main focus of attention on Sunday. In Düsseldorf, the SPD's decision also coincides with a busy day: in the afternoon in Medebach (Hochsauerland district), around 130 recruits of the Panzerbrigade 21 will take their oath of service; Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) has announced his attendance. For around 130 soldiers, the ceremonial pledge is an important moment in their careers.

Today, the Invictus Germany Sports Festival, a spin-off of the Invictus Games, which took place in Düsseldorf three years ago, kicks off in Düsseldorf. War-wounded from twelve nations will compete in four sports: indoor rowing, sitting volleyball, spinning, and table tennis. Admission is free. In parallel, firefighters from around the world will compete in Mönchengladbach until Sunday for the title of "Toughest Firefighter in the World," in full protective gear and with breathing apparatus, in tasks such as stair climbing and hose dragging.

Further topics on Sunday in NRW

Last but not least, attention turns to the football stage: on Sunday, the German national football team plays its first match against Curaçao, to be seen at 7 p.m. on the first channel. On Friday evening, news agencies reported a 1-1 (0-1) draw for co-host Canada against Bosnia-Herzegovina, with which Canada celebrated its very first point in World Cup tournament history.

For Ott and the NRW SPD, the nomination marks the start of a nearly ten-month election campaign. If the SPD does not reduce its deficit in the polls, the party faces another election defeat after 2022. If, on the other hand, it manages to score points with the new lead candidate, it could put up stronger resistance to the CDU of Minister-President Hendrik Wüst and set the course for the period after the election.

The coming weeks until the summer break are considered the first real test. The SPD announced that it would go into the election campaign with a statewide tour and policy issues from education and housing. Observers expect the personnel debate to quickly turn into a substantive dispute with the black-green state government, not least against the backdrop of the OVG ruling on the Regional Plan Ruhr.