Franziska Tell and Marek Helsner have taken over the leadership of the Bremen Greens. The new duo was elected at the Green Party’s state membership meeting on Saturday. In view of the climate crisis, right-wing extremism and inflation, the Greens must offer perspectives, said Franziska Tell. “We have to make sure that we address these problems, that we not only take people’s concerns and problems seriously, but also suggest concrete solutions.”
The scientist was elected as the new state board spokeswoman with 160 of 171 votes. She has been one of ten Green Party MPs since the general election in May and was involved in the coalition negotiations. The 28-year-old is the spokesperson for science, children’s, education and media policy, data protection and digital affairs for the Green Party. Previously, the Bremen native was on the state board of the Green Youth Bremen for three years.
Together with screenwriter Marek Helsner, she wants to convey a spirit of optimism. “We as the Greens in Bremen and Bremerhaven want and will do everything we can to give people a convincing perspective to make life in our two cities more socially just, more climate-neutral, more inclusive and more solidarity-based,” said Helsner. The 54-year-old was born in the Czech Republic and grew up with his family in Bremen. The father of three children is a member of the Green Advisory Board in Bremen’s Schwachhausen district and is leading the party after the election with 163 of 168 votes.
The election of the state board takes place every two years. The previous leadership duo with Alexandra Werwath and Florian Pfeffer no longer ran after the loss of votes in the state election. The Greens achieved 11.7 percent in the election in May – almost six percentage points less than four years earlier. The Greens are part of the state government in Bremen with the SPD and the Left. They represent the Finance Senator and the Environment Senator.
