The Socialist Equality Party (Partei für Soziale Gleichheit, PSG) is putting up candidates for the parliamentary elections and for the state election in Hesse, scheduled for September 22, 2013.

The aim of the PSG election campaign is to unite workers and youth in Germany and Europe in the fight against social cuts, unemployment and militarism and in defense of democratic rights. The campaign is part of a global initiative by the International Committee of the Fourth International to build revolutionary socialist workers’ parties.

The PSG is standing a total of nine candidates on state lists in Berlin, North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse. Currently party members and supporters are collecting the thousands of signatures required according to German electoral law for ballot access. The forms for these signatures can also be downloaded directly from the web site of the PSG and sent by post.

Berlin

The leading candidate of the PSG in Berlin is Ulrich Rippert (62), chairman of the PSG. Rippert is a founding member of the Socialist Labour League (Bunds Sozialistischer Arbeiter, BSA), the forerunner of the PSG, and has been active for more than 40 years in the Trotskyist movement. He is a member of the international editorial board of the World Socialist Web Site and has been a candidate in several previous parliamentary and European elections. Rippert is the father of two daughters and lives in Berlin. He is a candidate on the party list for Berlin for the parliamentary elections.

Christoph Vandreier (32) is deputy chairman of the PSG and works on the editorial board of the World Socialist Web Site. His focus is political developments in Eastern and Southeastern Europe. He joined the Trotskyist movement at an early age and for a time led the work of the International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) in Germany. Vandreier has lived in Berlin and worked for many years as a psychologist, aiding those with drug addiction problems. He is a candidate on the party list for Berlin for the parliamentary elections.

Susanne Salamah (55) works as an administrative assistant and is a member of the executive committee of the PSG. She joined the Trotskyist movement in 2000 and plays a leading role in the Berlin state association of the PSG. She writes regularly for the World Socialist Web Site on topics related to Berlin politics. Salamah is the mother of two daughters and lives in Berlin. She is standing on the state list for Berlin for the parliamentary elections.

Endrik Bastian (49) is a nurse and member of the executive committee of the PSG. He grew up in East Germany and joined the Trotskyist movement a few years after the collapse of the German Democratic Republic (GDR). Bastian now leads the work of the Berlin State Association of the PSG. He has represented the party as a candidate in a number of federal elections. Bastian is the father of three children and lives in Berlin. He is a candidate on the party list for Berlin for the parliamentary elections.

North Rhine-Westphalia

Dietmar Gaisenkersting (46) is a member of the National Executive of PSG and leads the work of the party in North Rhine-Westphalia. He joined the Trotskyist movement in 1989, during the period of the collapse of Stalinism and the fall of the Berlin Wall. He writes regularly for the World Socialist Web Site and has been a PSG candidate in several European and national elections. Gaisenkersting grew up and lives in the Ruhr region and is the father of two sons. He works as a teacher in Duisburg and is a candidate on the party list for North Rhine-Westphalia for the parliamentary elections.

Elizabeth Zimmermann-Modler (56) is a member of the National Executive of PSG and has been a member of the Trotskyist movement since 1975. She was politicized as a youth by such developments as the Vietnam War and the right-wing military coup in Chile in 1973. She writes regularly for the World Socialist Web Site on industrial developments and trade unions as well as the crimes of the Wehrmacht and refugee policy. She has been a candidate in parliamentary and European elections for the PSG on a number of occasions. Zimmermann-Modler works as a clerk and lives in Duisburg. She is standing on the state list for North Rhine-Westphalia for the parliamentary elections.

Hesse

Marianne Arens (61) works as a technical illustrator for a company in Frankfurt. She joined the Trotskyist movement in 1973 and writes regularly on developments in Italy for the World Socialist Web Site. Born in Bern, Switzerland, she has lived in Hesse for 35 years. Arens is married and has an adult son. She is standing on the state list for Hesse for the parliamentary election and is also a direct candidate for the electoral district of Offenbach City (Constituency 43) in the Hesse state election.

Achim Heppding (59) is a social worker and has been active in the Trotskyist movement for over 30 years. The son of a lathe operator, Heppding focuses on developments in the car industry for the World Socialist Web Site. He has represented the PSG in the Hesse state elections on several occasions and was also a PSG candidate in the European elections. Heppding lives and works in Offenbach. He is a candidate on the party list for Hesse for the parliamentary elections and on the national list, and also a replacement candidate for the electoral district of Offenbach City (Constituency 43) for the Hesse state election.

Helmut Arens (64) worked for Hoechst AG for over 35 years. Today he is retired and has a grown son. He has been a member of the Trotskyist movement, both as an executive member of the PSG and its predecessor organization, the BSA, for 40 years. Arens has represented the party in several parliamentary and European elections and in the Hesse state elections of 2003 and 2008. He is a candidate on the party list for the Hesse election.