Choose
Wahl-O-Mat for the European elections starts
bpb President Thomas Krüger in Berlin at the start of the Wahl-O-Mat for the 2024 European Parliament election. Photo
© Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa
It has been used as a decision-making aid in elections since 2002: The Wahl-O-Mat will be used again this year for the European elections.
Anyone who needs help making decisions for the European elections on June 9th can now do so again Use the Wahl-O-Mat from the Federal Agency for Civic Education. “The Wahl-O-Mat is a playful way to engage with the candidates’ programs,” said the President of the Federal Agency for Civic Education, Thomas Krüger, at the opening of the website.
With the online tool you can compare your own position with that of all approved parties in 38 theses between approval and rejection. A percentage value indicates the degree of agreement.
The Wahl-O-Mat has been around since 2002. Its primary purpose is to mobilize young people for state, federal and European elections. According to the headquarters, the Wahl-O-Mat was played almost ten million times in the 2019 European elections, and over 21 million times in the last federal election. The theses were developed by 30 experts and young people who applied to be part of the editorial team. The online questionnaire as well as the federal center as a whole are financed with tax money.
The Wahl-O-Mat is not an election recommendation, but rather an access to the parties’ offerings, said Krüger. However, around six percent of users decided to vote in the last election because of the online tool.
SPD General Secretary Kevin Kühnert also welcomed this effect at the opening, which was attended by the parties represented in the European Parliament. “A tool that is now used by millions of people in every election can only be good because it helps people make a decision and even decide to take part in the election,” said Kühnert.