The elections for the 20th German Bundestag on September 26th are casting their shadows: the parties have eleven weeks to convince the voters of their programs and applicants. Postal voters can cast their votes at the beginning of August. According to current surveys, which of course change daily, the CDU / CSU are currently ahead of the Greens (19), SPD (15), FDP (11), AfD (10) and Left (7) with around 29 percent.
There are also applicants from the federal constituency 224 Starnberg-Landsberg-Germering who are seeking a mandate in Berlin as a direct candidate or via the list. CSU representative Michael Kießling, who has been a member of the Bundestag since 2017, should have the greatest chance of a direct mandate. His biggest competitors are Carmen Wegge (SPD), Martina Neubauer (Greens) and Britta Hundesrügge (FDP), who – surprises excluded – can at best get into the Bundestag via the lists.
Other direct candidates include Rasso Rebay von Ehrenwiesen (Free Voters) from Weßling, Simone Ketterl (Die Linke) from Utting, the Gautinger Rainer Groß (AfD) and Jochen Nibbe (Volt) from Herrsching. Face-to-face events during the election campaign have so far been the exception: the corona pandemic has significantly changed the parties’ strategies.
CSU
Michael Kießling, once mayor of Denklingen, has been the top dog of the Starnberg CSU in Berlin since 2017. Accordingly, the election campaign has so far focused on him alone: The 47-year-old shines in his constituency, especially on official occasions, most recently at the groundbreaking ceremony for the electric boat manufacturer Torqeedo. He is seen as a sociable parliamentarian who is not afraid of contact and would like to stay in Berlin. In addition to many press releases, his most important action is an election campaign tour with an old fire truck. The candidacy of the Starnberg CSU local chairwoman Charlotte Meyer-Bülow (52nd place on the state list) is unlikely to be crowned with success.
SPD
SPD candidate Carmen Wegge from Olching makes a lot of effort. The 32-year-old lawyer with a penchant for poetry slams has seen various video events with socially relevant topics since her nomination as a direct candidate (country list position 20). Whether unconditional basic income, affordable housing, culture, climate change, youth or flight and integration: Wegge is dedicated to current issues, on Thursday, July 15, there will be “Legalize Cannabis!” Under the motto “Be brave”, she will soon start the front door election campaign, and site-specific posters should be helpful. A “Politpoetry Slam Tour” is planned, including at the Five Lakes Film Festival. And maybe even SPD celebrities with Olaf Scholz and Saskia Esken will come to the Fünfseen-Land.
Green
The Greens, with Martina Neubauer at the helm, also advertise very diligently with various events and a sharper focus on the green federal election program. The focus is on, among other things, climate, environmental and nature protection, innovative economy, avoidance of waste of resources and garbage, mobility as well as asylum and integration. Neubauer hopes for the direct mandate, because the nomination of the experienced local politician at the Green Party conference in April at number 31 on the state list does not seem very promising. In addition to tried and tested campaign campaigns with house calls, information stands and social media, the Greens have also had experiences with video conferences. This weekend there will be a jazz concert with selected guests, Claudia Roth may come to Starnberg.
FDP
For a short time, the FDP seems to have taken a creative break with direct candidate Britta Hundesrügge (state list in 18th place). It should be over soon. Hundesrügge is running for the second time for the Bundestag, meanwhile maintains her chat hour (“Britta meets”) in the Internet format with selected personalities, relies on social media, newsletters and liberal celebrities: “Kick off” of the FDP is on August 1st Starnberger Kirchplatz with the federal chairman Christian Lindner. Also on the guest list: General Secretaries Volker Wissing (Federation) and Lukas Köhler (Bavaria).