Germany's Social Democrats choose Barley to lead EU election campaign [View all]
The vice president of the European Parliament, Katarina Barley, will lead Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) into the European elections after she received overwhelming support at a party conference in Berlin on Sunday.
Barley called for a determined campaign against right-wing populists and autocrats in the June 9 elections. "This is a decision on the future direction," Barley said with SPD leader Chancellor Olaf Scholz in attendance.
Conservatives and economic liberals wanted to reduce the European Union to merely an internal market and reduce protections, while others wanted to leave the bloc, Barley said in reference to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which is polling strongly.
"They would generate a serious emergency for the German economy in the briefest time," said Barley, a German-British dual citizen and who served as justice minister under Angela Merkel.
https://news.yahoo.com/germanys-social-democrats-choose-barley-174150870.html
