German Elections -- Results

[Provost Harrison]

This überhangmandat business seems very complicated. I am afraid I am going to have to sleep on this one

[Mazarin]

Originally posted by Snotty
So has anyone decided who actually won yet?

everyone lost though they're all claiming victory

[Proteus_MST]

Originally posted by Provost Harrison


I remember hearing about this, how inconsiderate of him to die just before an election How long will it take before the votes are in for Dresden? Would it be capable of having a significant impact on the current balance?

The election in Dresden takes place at October 2nd

Originally posted by Mazarin

everyone lost though they're all claiming victory

Yep, that´s exactly the point.
The election results can be interpreted that 2/3 of the german population trust neither the SPD nor the CDU enough to rule the country

[Harovan]

Originally posted by siron
With Prof. Biedenkopf the CDU had a charismatic figure in Saxony. He did a good job and therefore he was able to keep his good results (above 50%). Recently the NPD is quite strong there.

Yes, Biedenkopf was a good PM for Saxony, even I as rather left leaning voter have to admit this. I don't know how well his successor is faring, since I moved to Bavaria soon after Biedenkopfs demise.

[BeBMan]

Just for those who are interested: it looks now that the "grand coalition" of social democrats (SPD) and conservatives (CDU) remains now the only option. After recent talks both CDU and greens finally ruled out the so-called "Jamaica"-option together with liberal FDP. OTOH there are some media reports about SPD and CDU approaching eachother more and more, although some things are still difficult to work out......

[Provost Harrison]

So will that make Merkel the Chancellor? I can imagine that is going to be a rather uneasy and short-lived coalition...

[BeBMan]

Merkel could be, although personally I'd prefer the solution without both Schroeder and Merkel which is discussed here.

About stability, Western Germany already had such a coalition in the late sixties, and it wasn't that bad, but of course it was a completely different environment back then. I think they will make it over the full four years, simply because finally there is no alternative now, and nobody here is keen on another try for early elections. Also a lot of the trouble between both SPD and CDU is of course just talk to win some advantages over the other side in the daily business, and especially now when it is still unclear which side can gain what positions in the coalition. When they are getting closer to form a coalition a lot of those "big differences" of now will be sold as "not so dramatic". This already has begun a bit .....

[Colonâ„¢]

I've always been told that the previous grand coalition was a grand disaster. Not true?

[BeBMan]

I think it depends on the perspective: IIRC during that time it was strongly criticized, mainly due to the lack of opposition it brought. This was also the time of lots of protests in the public mainly as part of the student movement -here called APO - meaning translated something like "non-parlamentarian opposition" which the students felt was needed. Of course these protests have to be seen in context, they were not exclusively against the coalition but about lots of other topics as well (from Vietnam over free love to more democracy). However, if we look today on the pure political work the grand coalition did in various fields during those times it is - IIRC - not seen so bad anymore.

[Proteus_MST]

Originally posted by BeBro
Just for those who are interested: it looks now that the "grand coalition" of social democrats (SPD) and conservatives (CDU) remains now the only option. After recent talks both CDU and greens finally ruled out the so-called "Jamaica"-option together with liberal FDP. OTOH there are some media reports about SPD and CDU approaching eachother more and more, although some things are still difficult to work out......

The only other option would be a coalition between SPD/Greens/Left Party which probably wouldn´t happen as the SPD ruled out any coalition with the left party already from the beginning.

[axi]

The problems with such grand coalitions are:

1- They are too unstable because whenever one of the 2 parties sees an opportunity to win straight straightforwardly, they cause a collapse

2- There is always infighting among ministers, it's all about us nad them

3- There is the possibility that if they get too comfortable together, one of the smaller opposition parties will grow into a 2nd pole and the ruling coalition will shrink.

4- If the two big ones can work together, there is no reason for the other parliamentary parties not to try to join the government, which ends up with a "universal" government - exactly the opposite of what party politics is all about.

5- There is always the risk of the "extraparliamentary opposition" breaking out.

[Provost Harrison]

*bump*

Any more progress?

[BeBMan]

Nothing substantial so far. Those negotiations can take quite a while now. That's not so good, since we need clarity soon, but I think they simply need some time to change from "campaigning mode" before the elections to "cooperation mode" now.

[Provost Harrison]

I wonder how long it is going to take down all those damn posters, there seem to be one on anything that was vertical in Berlin. I was worried if I stood still for too long, I'd end up with one too

[BeBMan]

Most bigger posters seem to have gone now, but lots of the smaller stuff is still there, polluting the landscape....I hope they take them away soon too ....