Minister-President Manuela Schwesig on 12 November 2026 in in Schwerin the planned line-up of the new state government of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania presented. The SPD politician intends to govern with the Left Party and the Greens. The cabinet is to comprise nine ministries, one more than before. Before it can be appointed, the three parties still have to approve their coalition agreement; Schwesig is due to be re-elected by the state parliament on 16 November.
The Greens are to receive a portfolio bringing together the environment, climate, energy and transport. Slated to lead it is Claudia Müller who took part in the coalition negotiations on behalf of her party. Responsibility for the environment and climate protection would thus be removed from the remit of Agriculture Minister Till Backhaus . The SPD politician is to remain in office and also take responsibility, among other things, for state development and spatial planning.
Two ministries are earmarked for the Left Party: Kerstin Mieth is to take over the portfolio for social affairs, labour and health. Mieth has already worked at Schwerin’s social affairs ministry and most recently served as deputy government spokesperson. The justice ministry is to be headed by lawyer and former state parliament member Michael Noetzel . He would replace Jacqueline Bernhardt.
Changes are also planned within the SPD-led portfolios. The current Social Affairs Minister Stefanie Drese is to move to the Education Ministry. Carola Voß, until now a state secretary at the Finance Ministry, is slated to become finance minister. Her current minister Heiko Geue is to head the State Chancellery and at the same time become Minister for Federal and European Affairs and Digitalisation. Geue previously headed the State Chancellery from 2019 to 2021.
Interior Minister Christian Pegel and independent Economy Minister Wolfgang Blank are to remain in office. Blank’s portfolio is also to take responsibility for science and research. These changes will redistribute responsibilities among existing ministries; at the same time, Geue’s planned ministerial role will broaden the remit of the State Chancellery.
The agreement on personnel follows negotiations over the coalition agreement. The SPD and Left Party have governed together until now. The Greens are to join them in future. According to NDR, the three parties will together hold 39 seats in the state parliament; the AfD, the only opposition group, has 32 seats. In the state election the AfD became the strongest party.
Whether the agreement goes ahead depends first on decisions by the parties that are still pending. Only then can Schwesig stand for re-election in parliament and appoint the cabinet. The announcement on 12 November therefore sets out the intended division of responsibilities, but does not pre-empt the necessary political and parliamentary steps.
The opposition has already criticised the planned cabinet’s size. According to NDR, AfD parliamentary group leader Enrico Schult accused the coalition of missing an opportunity to make savings on itself. The number of ministries is therefore an early point of contention in the new legislative term, alongside the allocation of responsibilities.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).