Zur Bundestagswahl 2021: Die Wahlzulassung von Parteien und der Reformbedarf des Verfahrens

In: Zeitschrift für Parlamentsfragen, Band 52, Heft 2, S. 358-372

Abstract

If a political organization is not yet established (i .e ., represented in federal or regional parliaments), it needs to go through a formal application process, led by the federal returning officer and the federal election committee, to prove the sincerity of its participation in the election and its status as a political party. As documented here the preparation process for federal elections is based purely on habits and lacks legal security and transparency. As a remedy, the author suggests multiple measures. For example, the president of the federal statistical office could be officially nominated as federal returning officer, as has been common practice without legal basis for the last 100 years. Furthermore, it is recommended to reform the proportional representation of the established political parties in the federal election committee. The number of members could be increased to include experts with interdisciplinary expertise. The undefined process for the formal application of non-established political parties ought to be improved by providing a clearly defined framework for the information and documents that are to be handed in for the application.