Bundestag election: what the small parties want

You present yourself sometimes reactionary, sometimes progressive. For some it is about better cooperation, others want to turn the whole system upside down. 40 small and very small parties run for the Bundestag election. An overview.

There is at least one thing that nobody can accuse the small parties of before the general election: There is no shortage of ambitions and unusual proposals. The European Love Party, for example, wants people in future to hold political offices “who have a heart that is full of love and kindness”. Incidentally, the state should pay each wedding couple a wedding dress, wedding suit and wedding rings up to 3000 euros.

The mountain party has pre-buttoned capitalism. It promotes the transition to a classless, domination-free society. As an “eco-anarchist-realdadaist reservoir”, the party also advocates a paid travel obligation. The Human World Party, on the other hand, focuses on the welfare of all people, animals and nature.

More than 40 parties admitted

These are just a few examples of the total of 40 small and micro parties that are running alongside the large parties in the Bundestag election. In many cases, your prospects are slim. They have to get five percent of the second votes in order to enter the Bundestag – if they cannot do so through direct mandates.

The small parties encountered the first major hurdle in July. After the decision of the federal electoral committee, it was already over for a good half of the parties. The Jesuspartei was one of them, the Kaipartei and the non-German association, for example, were not allowed.

Well-known groups will also not appear on any ballot paper. The Republicans, one of the strongest right-wing extremist parties in the 1980s and 1990s, are again absent after 2017. The German Center Party, which sees itself as the oldest party in Germany, is also not allowed to compete.

Another party made it in the second attempt: The KPD’s successor party, the DKP, was initially excluded because of late reports, but after a ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court, it is now allowed to run candidates.

Despite the approval, seven smaller parties are not included. The parties German Central, German Conservatives, SGV and Liberal Democrats will not compete with either state lists or constituency candidates. This also applies to the two almost identical parties WiR2020 and Wir2020 as well as the union of Brandenburg United Citizens Movements / Free Voters.

Parties can be elected via state lists (second vote) or via the candidates in the constituencies (first vote). The parties, referendum, The Others, the Family Party, the Gray Panthers, the KlimalisteBW, the Thuringian Home Party and the Mountain Party, the non-partisan, can only be elected through individual direct candidates.

The “Corona Parties”

The Corona issue also shapes the political landscape. Several parties are criticizing the state corona measures. According to its website, the DieBasis party wants to make the citizens heard in order to secure freedom and fundamental rights and to enable political self-responsibility.

Left margin, right margin

The two parties, the Animal Welfare Party and the Animal Welfare Alliance, are primarily committed to animal welfare. The latter split from the Animal Welfare Party in 2013. The South Schleswig Association of Voters has a special position. The SSW was recognized as a party of national minorities. This means that the five percent hurdle does not apply to this party.

And then there are again small parties that are mentioned in reports on the protection of the constitution. The NPD escaped the ban in 2017, the right-wing extremist small party The Third Way is being monitored by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the DKP is classified as left-wing extremist by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, and the MLPD ascribed to dogmatic left-wing extremism.

Broadcasting note: ARD and ZDF will report on the small and very small parties on September 13 and 15 in the report “The dream of five percent. On the way to the small parties”.

Note: The other party is missing from the list because they have not yet provided any information.