The Lower Saxony state parliament elected SPD politician Olaf Lies as the new prime minister on Tuesday afternoon. The previous Minister of Economics Lies follows Stephan Weil, who had announced his retreat a few weeks ago, referring to his age and minor health problems. Weil had ruled the fourth largest federal state since the beginning of 2013. The 58-year-old Lies received 80 votes of the 146 mandate holders in the secret vote, which indicates high unity within the red-green coalition. The parliamentary groups together have 81 votes together in the state parliament, but there were illness -related absences in the state parliament. Lai makes minor changes in the cabinet: the European Ministry is dissolved and integrated into the State Chancellery, whose influence wants to be strengthened. The previous minister Wiebke Osigus loses her office, the new Minister of European Liner in the State Chancellery is Melanie Walter (SPD). The previous SPD parliamentary group leader Grant Hendrik Tonne will take over the vacant office of Minister of Economic Affairs. All other ministers remain in their offices. Not for the first time at the rowing lies, the Lower Saxony SPD was unanimously nominated for the office of Prime Minister at an extraordinary party congress. Lies will be elected SPD state chairman next weekend. Lies led the state association from 2010 to 2012, but then had to go to its former rival Stephan Weil. For Stephan Weil, there was a cross -party applause in the ranks of the AfD on Wednesday in the Lower Saxony state parliament. In a short speech, the SPD politician looked back on his twelve-year term and said that the formerly sharp contrast between the political camps in Lower Saxony had weakened over the years. The move in the AfD had obviously reminded all other factions that the opposites between them are much lower.
