Malu Dreyer (SPD) has once again been elected Prime Minister of Rhineland-Palatinate.

At the constituent meeting of the Rhineland-Palatinate state parliament, the SPD politician received 55 votes - the coalition of SPD, Greens and FDP has exactly that number of MPs.

There are 101 members in the state parliament, so the Prime Minister needed at least 51 votes.

Dreyer has ruled the country since 2013, with a traffic light government since 2015.

Julian Staib

Political correspondent for Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland based in Wiesbaden.

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    For the first time, six parliamentary groups are represented in the state parliament;

    The free voters with six MPs are new.

    With 5.4 percent they made the leap over the five percent hurdle for the first time.

    The SPD had once again become the strongest force in the state elections on March 14th.

    It received 35.7 percent of the vote, the Greens were the only party able to gain 9.3 percent, the FDP only received 5.5 percent.

    The largest opposition party, the CDU, achieved only 27.7 percent, the AfD also lost and received 8.3 percent.

    Nine ministers from the SPD, Greens and FDP

    Following the election of the Prime Minister, the nine ministers of the state government were sworn in. As in the previous legislative period, the SPD has five ministers, the Greens and the FDP two each. Minister for Labor, Social Affairs, Transformation and Digitization will be Alexander Schweitzer (SPD). The former head of the State Chancellery Clemens Hoch becomes Minister for Science and Health, Roger Lewentz remains Minister for Interior and Sport, Doris Ahnen continues to head the Ministry of Finance, Stefanie Hubig (all SPD) the Ministry of Education.

    Anne Spiegel becomes deputy prime minister of the strengthened Greens.

    She continues to head the Ministry of the Environment, which was given additional responsibilities.

    Katharina Binz (Greens), who was the only Greens to receive a direct mandate, will be the new Minister for the enlarged Family and Integration Ministry.

    At the FDP, Daniela Schmitt succeeds Volker Wissing as Minister of Economics.

    The FDP general secretary in the federal government leaves the state government.

    Herbert Mertin (FDP) remains Minister of Justice.

    Unlike originally planned, the constituent meeting did not take place in the state parliament in the completely renovated “Deutschhaus”, but rather in the Rheingoldhalle due to the pandemic.

    Parliament had also met there since May in the previous legislative period.