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‘And that’s a good thing’: goodbye Wowereit!

A chapter in Berlin's political history has closed as long-time mayor Klaus Wowereit has stepped down and the city senate has elected Michael Müller to be the capital's new helmsman on Thursday.

Published: 11 December 2014 12:02 CET

'And that's a good thing': goodbye Wowereit!

Tschüssi Wowi! Photo: DPA

With 87 of the 146 votes in the senate, Wowereit's fellow Social Democratic Party (SPD) member was confirmed as Wowereit's successor. He garnered two more votes than the reigning SPD and Christian Democrat (CDU) coalition have seats.

Müller soon left the Parliament to attend a state first ministers' conference with Angela Merkel on state finances.

Müller casts his vote. Photo: DPA

The 61-year-old incumbent Wowereit held his post since 2001, but finally announced he was stepping down in June after years of scandal over the delayed development of the Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER).

The airport was supposed to open in 2010 at a cost of €2.83 billion. A current opening date has yet to be scheduled, though current estimates by CEO Hartmut Mehdorn say 2017 or 2018. Costs have overrun to €5.4 billion, with a further €2.19 billion expected to be incurred before completion.

The scandal almost brings Wowereit's career, which started with a 2001 election called in the wake of another scandal, full circle.

Political prodigy

Wowereit first entered mayoral office after being elected the district mayor for Berlin-Tempelhof at the age of 30, making him the youngest politician to be elected to the city legislature.

In 2001, following the Berliner Bank Scandal, in which the state-owned bank collapsed with billions of debt, Mayor Eberhard Diepgen stepped down, "Wowi" as he's affectionately know had worked his way high enough in the ranks to win the party's nomination.

Wowereit came out as gay in his 2001 mayoral campaign when he learned that tabloids were about to reveal his sexuality in print.

"I am gay and that is a good thing," Wowereit said as he publicly came out.

After a moment's pause, the announcement was met with cheering and applause at the SPD headquarters.

"… and that is a good thing" became a catchphrase associated with "Wowi". At the time of his resignation, he was the only openly gay mayor leading a major European city.

Later, in a 2010 interview with the US-publication, Time Magazine, Wowereit said that his coming out strengthened his campaign.

Throughout his career, he also became known for coining the unofficial tagline for Berlin, "poor, but sexy", which he said in television interview in 2004. To this day, it's hard to find a travel article about the German capital that doesn't reference the 10-year-old description of the city.

Despite the occasional flare-ups of discontent with Berlin's government, which include BER, rising rent prices, and the reconstruction of the Prussian palaces at a cost of €552 million – adding to the city's record debt of around €60 billion – Wowereit kept getting re-elected.

In 2011, he started his fourth term after his party received a fresh majority.

His final day in Berlin's Rote Rathaus (Red City Hall) were marked with well-wishes and flowers from his colleagues. As he left, he said "Tschüss!" and someone answered "See you soon!" to which the outgoing mayor only responded with a "nö" in true Berliner form.

Wowereit is a life-long Berliner and lives with his partner of 21 years, neurosurgeon Jörn Kubicki.

Müller now has two years before the next Berlin city election to prove himself at the helm of Europe's second biggest city. He faces several challenges, not the least of which is the Wowereit's Achilles' heel, BER.

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Output is expected to expand 0.3 percent this year, the economy ministry said, up from a prediction of 0.2 percent in February.

The slightly rosier picture comes after improvements in key indicators — from factory output to business activity — boosted hopes a recovery may be getting under way.

The German economy shrank slightly last year, hit by soaring inflation, a manufacturing slowdown and weakness in trading partners, and has acted as a major drag on the 20-nation eurozone.

But releasing its latest projections, the economy ministry said in a statement there were growing indications of a “turning point”.

“Signs of an economic upturn have increased significantly, especially in recent weeks,” Economy Minister Robert Habeck said at a press conference.

The ministry also cut its forecast for inflation this year to 2.4 percent, from a previous prediction of 2.8 percent, and sees the figure falling below two percent next year.

“The fall in inflation will lead to consumer demand — people have more money in their wallets again, and will spend this money,” said Habeck.

“So purchasing power is increasing, real wages are rising and this will contribute to a domestic economic recovery.”

Energy prices — which surged after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine — had also fallen and supply chain woes had eased, he added.

Several months ago there had been expectations of a strong rebound in 2024, with forecasts of growth above one percent, but these were dialled back at the start of the year as the economy continued to languish.

‘Germany has fallen behind’

But improving signs have fuelled hopes the lumbering economy — while not about to break into a sprint — may at least be getting back on its feet.

On Wednesday a closely-watched survey from the Ifo institute showed business sentiment rising for a third consecutive month in April, and more strongly than expected.

A key purchasing managers’ index survey this week showed that business activity in Germany had picked up.

And last week the central bank, the Bundesbank, forecast the economy would expand slightly in the first quarter, dodging a recession, after earlier predicting a contraction.

German Economics Minister Robert Habeck

Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) presents the latest economic forecasts at a press conference in Berlin on Wednesday, April 24th. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Michael Kappeler

Despite the economy’s improving prospects, growth of 0.3 percent is still slower than other developed economies and below past rates, and officials fret it is unlikely to pick up fast in the years ahead.

Habeck has repeatedly stressed solutions are needed for deep-rooted problems facing Germany, from an ageing population to labour shortages and a transition towards greener industries that is moving too slowly.

“Germany has fallen behind other countries in terms of competitiveness,” he said. “We still have a lot to do — we have to roll up our sleeves.”

Already facing turbulence from pandemic-related supply chain woes, the German economy’s problems deepened dramatically when Russia invaded Ukraine and slashed supplies of gas, hitting the country’s crucial manufacturers hard.

While the energy shock has faded, continued weakness in trading partners such as China, widespread strikes in recent months and higher eurozone interest rates have all prolonged the pain.

The European Central Bank has signalled it could start cutting borrowing costs in June, which would boost the eurozone.

But Habeck stressed that care was still needed as, despite the expectations of imminent easing, “tight monetary policy has not yet been lifted.”

In addition, disagreements in Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party ruling coalition are hindering efforts to reignite growth, critics say.

This week the pro-business FDP party, a coalition partner, faced an angry backlash from Scholz’s SPD when it presented a 12-point plan for an “economic turnaround”, including deep cuts to state benefits.

Christian Lindner, the fiscally hawkish FDP finance minister, welcomed signs of “stabilisation” in the economic forecasts but stressed that projected medium-term growth was “too low to sustainably finance our state”.

“There are no arguments for postponing the economic turnaround,” he added.