There has been a lot of talk about kingmakers since Sunday. But it should actually be called Chancellor Makers, and if the Greens had their way, they would prefer Chancellor Makers, but nothing will come of it now. Still, they have a good feeling. “That is the historically best result for us,” says the Neubiberger councilor Frederik Börner, who at 29 years of age is one of the youngsters in the party. If it were only up to the party supporters under 30, the Greens and Liberals could clearly decide among themselves who they would like to have in the Chancellery: In this age group, 22 percent voted for the Greens and 20 percent for the FDP.
Members of both parties in the district consider the fact that both are now aiming to first explore each other as to whether it should be a traffic light or Jamaica. However, a clear preference is emerging, especially among the Greens: for traffic lights and against an alliance with the Union.
“The result is a clear sign against continuing like this,” says the Taufkirchen councilor Robin Waldenburg. The Union belongs in the opposition, and the people voted that way, says the 21-year-old. The fact that the FDP and the Greens intend to hold talks in advance could be an advantage; What is important, however, is that the Greens get their core issue of climate protection through. “Climate protection is not waiting for a social change,” said Waldenburg, who left the Greens’ result of 14.8 percent “ambiguous”. “We have grown, but not as much as we had hoped.”
Frederik Börner also admits that expectations were high, especially at the beginning of the election campaign, but that it quickly became clear that they would not be fulfilled. “The second strongest force in the district is a strong result,” says the Neubiberger. The decision on the federal government will be made in Berlin, however, and Börner is also of the opinion that it could be an advantage if the FDP and the Greens vote in advance in a “junior partnership”. This could prevent a failure like four years ago. From his point of view, both parties should then approach a coalition with the SPD. “There is a clear government mandate for the SPD. I would like the traffic lights and I think that is also the mood in the party, because we have the greatest overlap with the SPD.”
As much climate protection as possible
The Ottobrunn local councilor Fabian Matella, 25, agrees: “It is important to us that we implement as much climate protection as possible in a coalition. I would prioritize a traffic light because of the similarities.” And it certainly makes sense for the smaller parties to be clear about what they want.
But there are also preferences for a Jamaica coalition – namely with the FDP. He is too far away to be able to judge what his party colleagues in Berlin are up to, says Thomas Jännert from Kirchheim. But: “It would be easier with the Union.” The inferior direct candidate Axel Schmidt from Oberhaching also sees it that way. The intersection between the FDP and the Union is greater than that between the FDP and the SPD. “Laschet addressed many points that are also in our party program in the trialles.”
In the election itself, Schmidt would have hoped for more than 11.5 percent, but the good performance among younger voters in particular shows: “The FDP is not an old, narrow-minded party.” And he adds: “Our climate program is more radical than that of the Greens.” His party tries to achieve more climate protection through technological innovations, not through bans. Schmidt suspects that the promises of promotion that are typical of the FDP have appealed to many young people. The young liberal Sam Batat, 23, attaches great importance to this. The Taufkirchner comes from an immigrant family, the FDP stands like no other party for “that I get ahead in life through my hard work, my willingness to take risks and advance ideas,” he says. Batat wants a government coalition that “tackles the big questions of the 1920s and builds the foundations for a strong future”. Who is in the Chancellery is “at first indifferent”.
Complaint about reform backlog
In conversation with Manfred Riederle, the buzzwords “digitization” and “future technologies” are mentioned. There is a reform backlog in Germany, complains the FDP district council from Unterschleißheim. “We urge that the politics of administration come to an end.” Katharina Diem, the young district councilor from Kirchheim, underlines the importance of the promise of promotion and the “freedom of different lifestyles”. She is hoping for a “future-oriented, innovative coalition” that will keep the younger generation in view. The exploratory talks will show with which coalition this goal can be achieved.
If it is up to the Greens district leader Sabine Pilsinger and parliamentary group leader Christoph Nadler, this should happen in a traffic light. “We will have to fight hard for more climate protection and that might be a little easier in this alliance,” says Pilsinger. For Nadler, a Chancellor Laschet is simply “unthinkable” https://www.sueddeutsche.de/muenchen/landkreismuenchen/. “We need a push for modernization,” he says, which can be achieved more easily with the SPD.