Guide to German Politics

The Reichstag in Berlin.

The German federal election is this Sunday, so for all those readers abroad who wonder how the German government works – don't lie, you know you've thought about it – here is a quick guide to Germany's political system.

On the surface it might be tempting to compare the German political system to the Canadian system. They're both federal systems with power devolved to provinces or states, but in Canada it's that way because of size. 

In Germany, this system comes from history. Before there was a Germany, there was a bunch of small countries and kingdoms and dukedoms of German-speakers. Bavaria was a kingdom. Hamburg was an independent city-state for centuries. Hesse was a country whose chief exports were cuckoo clocks and mercenaries.

If they weren't completely independent, they enjoyed a certain level sovereignty within the Holy Roman Empire and, later, the German Confederation. Even when Prussia (another German-speaking country) absorbed them all into the German Empire, they were granted a great deal of autonomy.

How today's federal government functions is dictated in Basic Law, Germany's constitution. Rules around institutions can be changed, but not easily. Sections around individual and human rights can never be changed because some assholes in the 1930s did exactly that.

It's worth mentioning that Basic Law's articles were written based on the hard lessons learned from the National Socialist dictatorship and the political deadlock of the Weimar Republic that lead to it.

Bundesrat

This is Germany's upper house, like Canada's Senate. Unlike Canada's Senators, who are appointed by the prime minister, members of the Bundesrat are sent to Berlin by Germany's 16 states.

They're chosen based on the party composition of their state's assembly, or Landtag, which itself is partly based on proportional representation. States get a base number of delegates, which rises based on population – more people, more votes.

In Canada, the Senate was once considered the sober second thought, above the partisan House of Commons. Germany's Bundesrat is more of a check on federal power. It offers a state perspective on issues and acts as a brake on the federal government's powers over the states.

The Bundesrat doesn't usually propose legislation but it must pass all legislation before is becomes law and has the power to veto bills from the Bundestag.

If the Bundesrat vetoes a bill, and the Bundestag doesn't agree, then it goes to a compromise committee formed of members from both houses, which makes, you guessed it, a compromise. When a compromise is reached, neither Bundesrat or Bundestag can change it.

You can bet there was some hard lessons led to that idea.

Chancellor

Chancellor Angela Merkel is Germany's prime minister. She, along with the cabinet she selects, is the executive branch of the German government. Yes, there is a German president, but he is mostly a ceremonial head of state who signs laws, waves to crowds from balconies, and cuts ribbons.

The Chancellor is the head of the largest party of the Bundestag, or the largest coalition of partners. She and the cabinet proposes legislation. They are the initiators in the law-making process. Ultimately, they hold the real power.

Interesting aside: Chancellors cannot call snap elections and cannot be removed with a No Confidence vote unless a successor has already been chosen. Germany learned the hard way in the Weimar days that a hamstrung parliament just begs for a dictator 'to get things done.'

Bundestag

This is the lower house and will be elected directly by the people this Sunday. They represent the people of their districts and act as a check on the executive – holding question periods, scrutinizing legislation, broaching constituent concerns. In Canada, that's usually the mandate for the Opposition, but in Germany there is no Official Opposition – it's everyone's job.

Voting is a mixed-member proportional system. I can sense your eyes are starting to glaze over, so hold on.

Half of the Bundestag (299 members) are elected directly by their constituencies in a first-past-the-post race. They become the representatives of their specific districts, like an MP in Canada representing their riding.

Now for the proportional representation vote. Hey, don't open another tab! Stay with me!

On the other half of a voter's ballot is a box to tick for a political party. Voters choose their party of choice, which is counted as a popular vote. A percentage of seats are then allocated based on that vote, which is tallied nationwide. This sends a total of almost 600 members to the Bundestag.

This election, Germans get to vote twice: for the person they want to represent their district and for the party that aligns with their political desires.

Political parties must earn at least five percent of that popular vote or win three districts to get earn popular representation seats – again a leftover from the lessons of the Weimar Republic to keep the crazy political fringes from hijacking the Bundestag.

Some words about this election...

Currently, four parties hold seats in the Bundestag – Anglea Merkel's ruling Christian Democratic Party and its Bavarian sister party, Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU), the Social Democrats (SPD), the Left Party, and the Greens.

The right-wing CDU and the left-wing SPD have been in a ruling coalition together and, in compromising with each other, have both drifted to the centre. Many of their traditional supporters look likely to vote for more extreme parties on the left and right. 

The Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the Freedom Party (FDP) have put their immigration and economic policies, respectively, to the right of the traditionally right-wing CDU. Their polling numbers hover at around 10 percent a piece. 

The coalition was more costly for SPD. Despite an energized beginning to the campaign with a new leader, polls now suggest they're in for a big loss. The Left, the Greens have benefitted from the SPD's listless campaign, and are both sitting at around 10% of the popular vote. They might also be losing vote to the AfD too. 

You might not like what they have to say, but parties were sent to the Bundestag by the people who voted for them. That's the beauty of the proportional party vote, it opens up the Bundestag to more parties and more views. Plus, that five percent threshold keeps the crazies out, like the Pirate Party (sounds funny, I know), or the NPD (the not so funny neo-fascists).

This also makes it difficult to predict how the next government will look because the winning party needs to form a coalition with other parties no matter what. The CDU looks likely to win, but with no majority will it seek support from the SPD again? Or will it lean to its right, towards the Freedom Party? Or with the Greens, who are open to a coalition with the CDU?

For those of you who made it to the end of this post, I think we can agree: This is exciting stuff!