Election mishap commission accuses Berlin Senate of serious omissions – criticism also from the opposition

On Wednesday, the representatives of the 21-strong expert commission on the Berlin election glitches were unusually open in their criticism of the Senate responsible at the time and, above all, of the interior administration. This is responsible for the supervision of elections and should have anticipated many of the problems, it was said when the panel’s final report was presented.

For example, it was clear early on that the number of polling booths in many polling stations would be too few, which led to queues. In addition, long before the election in September 2021, it was noticed that some constituencies had received incorrect ballot papers. However, according to the Commission, there was no appropriate response to this either. This mistake was then repeated in many polling stations on election day.

The expert commission is now calling for comprehensive reforms as the rbb reported on Tuesday. In the future, the preparation of elections must be organized uniformly throughout Berlin and, among other things, the competences of the state election commission must be strengthened, according to the report presented in Berlin on Wednesday. In retrospect, the problems that arose, such as long waiting times in front of the polling stations, missing ballot papers and too few voting booths, were the result of avoidable mistakes.

The Berlin opposition also sharply criticizes the then Senate and the Interior Senator Andreas Geisel (SPD), who will be responsible for 2021. “Almost all the problems were homemade and foreseeable,” said CDU General Secretary Stefan Evers, thereby agreeing with the almost identical conclusion of the commission. “It’s all the worse that the SPD and the Interior Senator who was responsible at the time have so far denied any responsibility for the election chaos.”

According to Evers, Berlin’s governing mayor Franziska Giffey (SPD) is now obliged to implement the commission’s proposals. “The organizational failure of the Senate must never be repeated.”

Criticism also comes from the FDP. “The elections in Berlin were a disgrace for the whole city,” said its spokesman for administrative modernization, Roman-Francesco Rogat. He supported the Commission’s central demand for a stronger state election commission. Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD), Geisel’s successor in office, is now primarily responsible for the immediate and rapid implementation of the Commission’s proposals.

The independent commission commissioned by the Berlin Senate consisted of around 20 experts. They should analyze what happened on election day, September 26, 2021, and come up with suggestions for improvement. On this day, federal, parliamentary and district elections as well as the vote on the so-called expropriation referendum took place in Berlin. In addition, there were extensive traffic disruptions due to a major sporting event, the Berlin Marathon.

At the end of September, the Berlin Constitutional Court wants to hear numerous objections to the elections. Then the decision is made as to whether the election to the House of Representatives must be repeated in part or in full.

Broadcast: rbb24 Inforadio, July 6, 2022, 1 p.m