Germany's Social Democrats to elect new leadership in January

Germany's centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) will elect its new leadership in mid-January, dpa learned from party sources on Thursday. 

The party - which is in coalition with Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives in the national government - was rocked on Monday by the resignation of co-leader and Labour Minister Bärbel Bas following a family tragedy. 

Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil subsequently proposed that the party's entire leadership face re-election. It is unclear whether he will run for another term as co-leader. 

The entire party executive committee will be re-elected at the SPD's annual conference in the northern city of Bremen on January 16-17, the sources told dpa. 

Candidates for the dual leadership of the party include the influential premiers of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Saarland, Manuela Schwesig and Anke Rehlinger. 

Defence Minister Boris Pistorius, who is the most popular SPD politician in opinion polls, has ruled out standing as a candidate.

Historically one of post-war Germany's two main political camps, the SPD has seen its support base slide in recent years, but it remains in office in 12 of the country's 16 state governments, along with the federal administration.