Germany’s highest court has ruled to uphold the core elements of an electoral reform designed to downsize the country’s parliament, the Bundestag. The Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe overturned a planned change that would have disproportionately impacted smaller parties by abolishing the basic mandate clause. This clause ensures that parties receiving less than 5% of the vote can still be represented in the Bundestag if they have at least three directly elected lawmakers. The court’s decision came after objections were raised by the Christian Social Union and the Left Party, who feared losing their chance to send lawmakers to Berlin.
The electoral reform, which will reduce the size of the Bundestag from 736 members to 630, as well as abolish the overhang and compensatory mandates, was approved by lawmakers last year. Parties across the political spectrum agree that the Bundestag has too many members, but they have disagreed on how to address the issue. The new system will require parties to win at least 5% of the list vote or have at least three directly elected lawmakers in order to secure seats in parliament.
While the court’s ruling was seen as a success for smaller parties, the Christian Social Union expressed discontent with the decision. CSU leader Markus Söder called it a “slap for the national government” and indicated that his party may seek further changes to the reform. However, Bundestag speaker Bärbel Bas, a member of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats, welcomed the court’s decision, stating that the cap on the size of the parliament sends an important signal to voters about controlling growth.
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