Winfried Kretschmann is a committed environmentalist and social liberal, but talks openly about his diesel-fueled car and the Catholic faith. Kretschmann has mass appeal in Germany's conservative south and is more popular there than the party he represents. This ability to pull in conservative voters who would not otherwise vote for the Greens has been labeled the "Kretschmann effect." As state premier Kretschmann was a strong supporter of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to allow 1.1 million refugees and migrants into Germany in 2015. In 1979 Kretschmann found his permanent political home and was one of the co-founders of the Green Party in Baden-Württemberg.

Source: The Standard March 12, 2021 08:28 UTC