Harald Ringstorff

Harald Ringstorff ( born September 25, 1939 in Wittenburg ) is a German politician ( SPD). He was from November 1998 to October 2008 Prime Minister of the Federal State of Mecklenburg -Vorpommern.

Life and career

After graduating from high school in 1958 in Hagenow Ringstorff did his military service with the NVA and began in 1960 to study chemistry at the University of Rostock, which he finished in 1965 as a chemist. After that he worked as a research assistant working at the University of Rostock and specialized in the field of analytical chemistry. In 1969 here his doctorate. nat. with the work " Voltametric studies on a novel use of the stationary mercury electrode for trace analysis ." He then worked until 1987 as a chemist at the VEB Kombinat shipbuilding in Rostock. From 1987 to 1990 he was head of the branch of marine paints coast at VEB Kombinat varnishes and paints.

Harald Ringstorff is married and has one child.

Party

1989 Ringstorff belonged to the founding members of the Social Democratic Party of the GDR ( SDP). From 1990 to 2003 he was state chairman of the SPD in Mecklenburg- Vorpommern. Ringstorff occurred in 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006 as SPD's top candidate to the state elections in Mecklenburg- Vorpommern.

Member of Parliament

From March to October 1990 was Ringstorff at the first freely elected People's Chamber of the GDR. From 1990 to 2011 he was a member of the Landtag of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Here he was from 1990 to 1994 and from 1996 to 1998 chairman of the SPD parliamentary group.

Ringstorff has been selected in the regional elections on 17 September 2006 on the SPD state list in the state legislature. At the state election, 2011, he no longer went to.

Public offices

In the parliamentary elections on October 14, 1990, there was a formation of a CDU - FDP coalition, which was based on 33 of the 66 seats and was tolerated by a single deputy.

After the FDP withdrew from the Diet and, accordingly, from the state government at the state election on 16 October 1994 led to the formation of a grand coalition led by the CDU Prime Minister Berndt page. Ringstorff took over on December 8, 1994, the Office of the Minister for Economic Affairs and the European Union and the Deputy Prime Minister. On May 7, 1996, he left office to take over the chairmanship of the SPD parliamentary group again.

After the 1998 state elections, the SPD formed a coalition with the PDS after this was in 1994 by the resistance of the former SPD chairman Rudolf Sharping Federal. Ringstorff was elected on 3 November 1998 as prime minister. Until 19 September 2000, he was also Minister of Justice. As such, he dismissed in August 1999 the Prosecutor General Alexander Prechtel. At the regional elections of 2002 his government was in heavy losses of the PDS and the SPD significant gains, confirmed. In the state elections in 2006 Ringstorffs government was again confirmed. The SPD had a share of the vote fell by about ten percentage points to accept, but remained so still the strongest party.

Since the previous coalition of SPD and PDS with 36 of 71 seats, retaining only a wafer-thin majority, to Ringstorff and the country - SPD, the second-placed CDU decided to offer a coalition that was formed on 7 November 2006 with the re-election Ringstorffs. From 1 November 2006 to 31 October 2007 Ringstorff was President of the Bundesrat. On August 6, 2008 Ringstorff announced to want to resign as Prime Minister. He would be leaving the grounds of age. On October 6, Erwin Selle ring took over as the successor to the premiership.

Cabinets

• Cabinet Page II - Cabinet Ringstorff I - Cabinet Ringstorff II - Cabinet Ringstorff III

Awards

• 2000 - Marie - Country Cross Second Class (Estonia)
• 2007 - Great Cross of Merit with Star and Sash of the Federal Republic of Germany