On February 23, Germany votes for a new parliament. The new Bundestag will be different from the previous ones. These are the innovations of the electoral reform that was approved after much debate and previous failed attempts.
The importance of the vote for the party increases
The ballot paper remains the same. Each voter has two votes – one for a district candidate and one for a party. But the importance of the second vote, which determines the list of deputies elected by the parties, will increase. The number of deputies is limited to 630, down from 733 in the previous Bundestag.
There are no more additional mandates.
Previously, if a party won many seats in certain constituencies but did not have enough votes in total, it received additional seats in parliament, called "Überhangmandate" in German. The reform has now abolished these seats. Candidates who win constituencies can only enter parliament if their party's votes match the corresponding results. This change is intended to increase the weight of the second vote and ensure fairer representation.
The electoral threshold remains, but with exceptions
The 5% threshold remains in force: parties that do not pass this threshold cannot enter the Bundestag. However, a party that wins at least three direct seats can enter parliament even without reaching the threshold. This rule ensures representation for parties that have strong local support, such as "Die Linke" and "Freie Wähler".
The February 23 elections are expected to be a test for this new system. With a smaller parliament and more focus on the second vote, the reform is expected to strengthen the democratic process and make the Bundestag more efficient. But it remains to be seen whether this reform will bring new challenges or meet expectations for fairer representation. /DW/ (A2 Televizion)
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