| Deutscher Bundestag Federal Parliament of Germany | |||||
| |||||
| Type | Lower house | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| President of the Bundestag | Dr. A lower house is one of two chambers of a Bicameral Legislature, the other chamber being the Upper house. The President of the Bundestag ( German: Präsident des Deutschen Bundestages or Bundestagspräsident) presides over the sessions of the Bundestag Norbert Lammert, CDU since October 18, 2005 | ||||
| Members | 613 | ||||
| Political groups | Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union of Bavaria Bloc (223) Social Democratic Party of Germany (222) Free Democratic Party (61) The Left. Dr Norbert Lammert (born November 16, 1948 in Bochum) is a German Politician ( CDU) The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 1009 - The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the Fatimid Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. The Free Democratic Party ( Freie Demokratische Partei, FDP is a liberal Political party in Germany. The Left (Die Linke is a German political party that came into being on 16 June 2007 as a merger of The Left Party/PDS the former (54) Alliance '90/The Greens (51) | ||||
| Last elections | September 18, 2005 | ||||
| Meeting place | Reichstag, Berlin | ||||
| Web site | http://www.bundestag.de | ||||
| Germany |
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The Bundestag ("Federal Diet" or "Lower House of German Parliament") is the parliament of Germany. The Alliance '90/The Greens ( Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) the German Green party, is a Political party in Germany whose regional Events 96 - Nerva is proclaimed Roman Emperor after Domitian is assassinated Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Reichstag building in Berlin was constructed to house the Reichstag, the first Parliament of the German Empire. Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Politics of Germany takes place in a framework of a federal parliamentary representative democratic Republic, whereby the Federal Chancellor The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (Grundgesetz für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland is the Constitution of Germany. Based on the experience with the atrocities of the Nazi regime, human rights in Germany are protected extensively by the constitution The Federal Assembly (aka Federal Convention Bundesversammlung is a special body in the institutional system of Germany, convened solely for the purpose of electing The Bundesrat ("federal council" or "upper house of German parliament" is the representation of the 16 Federal States ( Bundesländer) of The Federal Constitutional Court (in German: Bundesverfassungsgericht BVerfG) is a special Court established by the Basic Law for the Federal Republic The “ Federal Court of Justice of Germany ” ( German: “ Bundesgerichtshof ” or “ BGH ” is the highest court in the system of ordinary jurisdiction The President of Germany (deutscher Bundespräsident is Germany 's Head of state. Horst Köhler ( born 22 February 1943) is a German politician ( CDU) and economist who serves as the current President of Germany. The Head of government of Germany is called Chancellor (Kanzler (ˈaŋɡela doʁoˈteːa ˈmɛɐ̯kəl (born Angela Dorothea Kasner, 17 July 1954 in Hamburg, West Germany) is the Chancellor of Germany. The Cabinet of Germany ( German: Bundeskabinett or Bundesregierung) is the chief executive body of the Federal Republic of Germany Germany (Deutschland is a Federal Republic consisting of sixteen States, known in German as Länder (singular German districts (de ''Kreise'' or de ''Landkreise'' in the states of Nordrhein-Westfalen and Schleswig-Holstein, singular de ''Kreis'' and de ''Landreis'' The following information deals with elections in Germany, including elections to the Federal Diet (the lower house of the federal parliament the Landtags This is a list of political parties in Germany. Germany has a Multi-party system with two large parties three substantial smaller parties and a number of minor The Federal Republic of Germany is a Central European country and member of the European Union, Group of 8 and NATO (among others The European Union is a unique entity possessing elements of Intergovernmentalism, Supranationalism and a Multi-party Parliamentary democracy Information on politics by country is available for every Country, including both De jure and De facto independent In Politics, a diet is a formal Deliberative assembly. The term is derived from Medieval Latin dietas, and ultimately comes from TalkParliament#Screen-size. -->A  parliament is a Legislature, especially in those Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. It was established with Germany's constitution of 1949 (the Grundgesetz), and is the successor of the earlier Reichstag. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Year 1949 ( MCMXLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (Grundgesetz für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland is the Constitution of Germany. The Reichstag ( German for "Imperial Diet " was the Parliament of the Holy Roman Empire, the North German Confederation, The current President of the Bundestag is Norbert Lammert. The President of the Bundestag ( German: Präsident des Deutschen Bundestages or Bundestagspräsident) presides over the sessions of the Bundestag Dr Norbert Lammert (born November 16, 1948 in Bochum) is a German Politician ( CDU)
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The Bundestag was also the nickname of the governing body of the German Confederation from 1815 to 1866 (officially called Bundesversammlung, Federal Assembly). The German Confederation (Deutscher Bund was the association of Central European states created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to serve as the successor to This body met in Frankfurt and was presided over by the Austrian delegate. Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich As one of the chief instruments of the reactionary forces opposed to democracy and nationalism, it was dissolved during the liberal revolution of 1848 but reconvened in 1850. Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation It is a predecessor to the modern Bundestag in name only. While the modern parliament is elected by the people, the Bundestag of the German Confederation was appointed by the various princes and the governments of the free cities.
With the dissolution of the German Confederation in 1866 and the founding of the German Empire (Deutsches Reich) in 1871, the Reichstag was established as the German parliament in Berlin. The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification Deutsches Reich was the name for Germany from 1871 to 1945 in the German language. Two decades later, the current parliament building was erected. The Reichstag delegates were elected by direct and equal male suffrage (and not the three-class electoral system prevailing in Prussia until 1918). The Reichstag did not participate in the appointment of the Chancellor until the parliamentary reforms of October 1918. After the Revolution of November 1918 and the establishment of the Weimar Constitution, women were given the right to vote for (and serve in) the Reichstag, and the parliament could use the no-confidence vote to force the chancellor or any cabinet member to resign. In March 1933, one month after the Reichstag fire, parliament ceded its powers to the Federal Government of Chancellor Adolf Hitler by passing the infamous Enabling act of 1933. On 27 February 1933, the Reichstag building was subject to an arson attack and as a result seen as the pivotal event in the establishment of Nazi Germany The Enabling Act ( in German) was passed by the Reichstag ( Germany 's parliament on March 23, 1933 and signed Afterward it met only rarely to unanimously rubber-stamp the decisions of the government. It was last convened on 26 April 1942. Events 1467 - The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
With the new constitution of 1949, the Bundestag was established as the new (West) German parliament. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (Grundgesetz für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland is the Constitution of Germany. Because West Berlin was not officially under the jurisdiction of the Constitution and because of the Cold War, the Bundestag met in Bonn in several different buildings, including (provisionally) a former water works facility. West Berlin was the name given to the western part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990 Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located about 20 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia The former Reichstag building housed a history exhibition (Fragen an die deutsche Geschichte) and served occasionally as a conference center. The Reichstag building was also occasionally used as a venue for sittings of the Bundestag and its committees and the Bundesversammlung, the body which elects the German Federal President. However the Soviets harshly protested against the use of the Reichstag building by institutions of the Federal Republic of Germany and tried to disturb the sittings by flying supersonic jets close to the building.
Since 1999, the German parliament has again assembled in Berlin in its original Reichstag building, which dates from the 1890s and underwent a significant renovation under the lead of British architect Sir Norman Foster. Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. The Reichstag building in Berlin was constructed to house the Reichstag, the first Parliament of the German Empire. Norman Robert Foster Baron Foster of Thames Bank, OM, FRIBA, RDI, (born 1 June 1935) is a British architect whose company
In 2005, a small aircraft crashed close to the German parliament. It was then decided to ban private air traffic over Central Berlin.
Together with the Bundesrat, the Bundestag is the legislative branch of the German political system. The Bundesrat ("federal council" or "upper house of German parliament" is the representation of the 16 Federal States ( Bundesländer) of A legislature is a type of representative Deliberative assembly with the power to create amend and change Laws The law created by a legislature is called Legislation Politics of Germany takes place in a framework of a federal parliamentary representative democratic Republic, whereby the Federal Chancellor
Although most legislation is initiated by the executive branch, the Bundestag considers the legislative function its most important responsibility, concentrating much of its energy on assessing and amending the government's legislative program. The committees (see below) play a prominent role in this process. Plenary sessions provide a forum for members to engage in public debate on legislative issues before them, but they tend to be well attended only when significant legislation is being considered.
The Bundestag members are the only federal officials directly elected by the public; the Bundestag in turn elects the Chancellor and, in addition, exercises oversight of the executive branch on issues of both substantive policy and routine administration. The Head of government of Germany is called Chancellor (Kanzler This check on executive power can be employed through binding legislation, public debates on government policy, investigations, and direct questioning of the chancellor or cabinet officials. For example, the Bundestag can conduct a question hour (Fragestunde), in which a government representative responds to a previously submitted written question from a member. Members can ask related questions during the question hour. The questions can concern anything from a major policy issue to a specific constituent's problem. Use of the question hour has increased markedly over the past forty years, with more than 20,000 questions being posed during the 1987-90 term. Understandably, the opposition parties are active in exercising the parliamentary right to scrutinize government actions.
One striking difference when comparing the Bundestag with the U.S. Congress is the lack of time spent on serving constituents in Germany. The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses In part, that difference results from the fact that only 50 percent of Bundestag deputies are directly elected to represent a specific geographic district; the other half are elected as party representatives (see below). The political parties are thus of great importance in Germany's electoral system, and many voters tend not to see the candidates as autonomous political personalities but rather as agents of the party. A practical constraint on the expansion of constituent service is the limited personal staff of Bundestag deputies. Despite these constraints especially those deputies that are elected directly normally try to keep close contact with their constituents and to help them with their problems, particularly when they are related to federal policies or agencies.
Constituent service does also take place in the form of the Petition Committee. In 2004, the Petition Committee received over 18,000 complaints from citizens and was able to negotiate a mutually satisfactory solution to more than half of them.
Members serve four-year terms; elections are held every four years, or earlier in the relatively rare case that the Bundestag is being dissolved prematurely by the president. The President of Germany (deutscher Bundespräsident is Germany 's Head of state. The Bundestag can be dissolved by the president on the recommendation of the chancellor if the latter has lost a vote of confidence in the Bundestag. The Head of government of Germany is called Chancellor (Kanzler This has happened three times as of 2005: 1972 under Chancellor Willy Brandt, 1982 under Chancellor Helmut Kohl and 2005 under Chancellor Gerhard Schröder. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1972 ( MCMLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Willy Brandt, born Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm (18 December 1913 - 8 October 1992 was a German politician Chancellor of West Germany 1969&ndash1974 Year 1982 ( MCMLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar) Helmut Josef Michael Kohl (born 3 April 1930 is a German conservative politician and statesman ˌɡeɐ̯haɐ̯t fʁɪʦ kʊɐ̯t ˈʃʁøːdɐ (born 7 April 1944 German politician, was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005
All candidates must be at least eighteen years old; there are no term limits. The election uses the MMP electoral system, a hybrid of the first-past-the-post election system and party-list proportional representation. Mixed member proportional representation, also termed mixed-member proportional voting and commonly abbreviated to MMP, is an ' additional member ' The plurality voting system is a Single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of Voting systems used in multiple-winner Elections (e In addition, the Bundestag has a minimum threshold of either 5% of the national party vote or three (directly elected) constituency representatives for a party to gain additional representation through the system of proportional representation. A political party is a Political organization that seeks to attain and maintain political power within Government, usually by participating in electoral
Thus, small (and often extremist) minority parties cannot easily enter the Bundestag and prevent the formation of stable majority governments as they could under the Weimar constitution. Since 1961, only two new parties (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen and Die Linke) have entered the Bundestag. The Alliance '90/The Greens ( Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) the German Green party, is a Political party in Germany whose regional The Left (Die Linke is a German political party that came into being on 16 June 2007 as a merger of The Left Party/PDS the former
The additional member system results in a varying number of seats; since the 2005 elections, there have been 614 seats. The distribution of the seats is calculated by the Largest remainder method. The largest remainder method is one way of allocating seats proportionally for representative assemblies with party list Voting systems. The additional seats are distributed to ensure that the combined total of direct and additional seats is proportional to the vote; this is calculated separately for each state. Germany (Deutschland is a Federal Republic consisting of sixteen States, known in German as Länder (singular Sometimes parties win more seats directly than what their proportional share would entitle them to — these are known as overhang seats. Overhang seats can arise in elections under the traditional (i Unlike the situation in some German state parliaments, overhang seats are not compensated in the Bundestag.
Half of the Members of the Bundestag are elected directly from 299 constituencies (first-past-the-post election system), the other half on the parties’ Land lists (party-list proportional representation). The plurality voting system is a Single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of Voting systems used in multiple-winner Elections (e
Accordingly, each voter has two votes in the elections to the Bundestag. The first vote (first-past-the-post election system), allowing voters to elect their local representatives to the Bundestag, decides which candidates are sent to Parliament from the constituencies. The plurality voting system is a Single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member
The second vote (party-list proportional representation) is cast for a party list. Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of Voting systems used in multiple-winner Elections (e And it is this second vote that determines the relative strengths of the parties represented in the Bundestag.
At least 598 Members of the Bundestag are elected in this way. In addition to this, there are certain circumstances in which some candidates win what are known as overhang seats when the seats are being distributed. Overhang seats can arise in elections under the traditional (i
The 598 seats are distributed among the parties that have gained more than 5% of the second votes or at least 3 direct mandates. Each of these parties is allocated seats in the Bundestag in proportion to the number of votes it has received (Largest remainder method). The largest remainder method is one way of allocating seats proportionally for representative assemblies with party list Voting systems.
When the total number of mandates gained by a party has been determined, they are distributed between the Land lists. The distribution of the seats of that party to the 16 Lands is proportional to that party's second vote results in the Lands (Largest remainder method). The largest remainder method is one way of allocating seats proportionally for representative assemblies with party list Voting systems. The first of the mandates allocated to each Land go to the candidates who have won direct mandates in that Land. The rest are assigned in order to the candidates on the Land list put forward before the election.
Overhang seat: If a party has gained more direct mandates in a Land than it is entitled to according to the results of the second vote, it does not forfeit these mandates because all directly elected candidates are guaranteed a seat in the Bundestag. Overhang seats can arise in elections under the traditional (i
Detail of the Land list seats won by each party
| Parties | Constituency | Party list | Total seats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | +/− | Seats | +/− | Votes | % | +/− | Seats | +/− | Total | +/− | % | ||||
| Christian Democratic Union *) (Christlich-Demokratische Union) | 15,390,950 | 32. German federal elections took place on September 18, 2005 to elect the members of the 16th German Bundestag, the federal parliament of Germany The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. 6 | +0. 6 | 106 | +24 | 13,136,740 | 27. 8 | -1. 7 | 74 | -34 | 180 | -10 | 29. 3 | |||
| Christian Social Union of Bavaria *) (Christlich Soziale Union in Bayern) | 3,889,990 | 8. 2 | -0. 8 | 44 | +1 | 3,494,309 | 7. 4 | -1. 6 | 2 | -13 | 46 | -12 | 7. 5 | |||
| Social Democratic Party of Germany (Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands) | 18,129,100 | 38. 4 | -3. 5 | 145 | -26 | 16,194,665 | 34. 2 | -4. 3 | 77 | -3 | 222 | -29 | 36. 2 | |||
| Free Democratic Party (Freie Demokratische Partei) | 2,208,531 | 4. The Free Democratic Party ( Freie Demokratische Partei, FDP is a liberal Political party in Germany. 7 | +1. 1 | 0 | 0 | 4,648,144 | 9. 8 | +2. 5 | 61 | +14 | 61 | +14 | 9. 9 | |||
| The Left Party.PDS (Die Linke. This article is about the party before the merger with WASG in 2007 PDS), since 2007: The Left (Die Linke) | 3,764,168 | 8. The Left (Die Linke is a German political party that came into being on 16 June 2007 as a merger of The Left Party/PDS the former 0 | +3. 6 | 3 | +1 | 4,118,194 | 8. 7 | +4. 7 | 51 | +51 | 54 | +52 | 8. 8 | |||
| Alliance '90/The Greens (Bündnis '90/Die Grünen) | 2,538,913 | 5. The Alliance '90/The Greens ( Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) the German Green party, is a Political party in Germany whose regional 4 | -0. 2 | 1 | 0 | 3,838,326 | 8. 1 | -0. 5 | 50 | -4 | 51 | -4 | 8. 3 | |||
| National Democratic Party of Germany (Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands) | 857,777 | 1. The National Democratic Party of Germany (Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands NPD is a German pan-German nationalist and White nationalist political 8 | +1. 6 | 0 | 0 | 748,568 | 1. 6 | +1. 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0. 0 | |||
| Other | 1,272,410 | 2. 7 | – | 0 | 0 | 1,857,610 | 4. 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| Totals | 47,194,062 | 100 | – | 299 | – | 47,287,988 | 100 | – | 315 | +11 | 614 | +11 | 100 | |||

| + | CDU and CSU: | 224 | (36. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. 6%) | including 6 overhang seats |
| + | SPD: | 222 | (36. Overhang seats can arise in elections under the traditional (i 2%) | including 9 overhang seats |
| + | FDP: | 61 | (9. The Free Democratic Party ( Freie Demokratische Partei, FDP is a liberal Political party in Germany. 9%) | |
| + | The Left: | 54 | (8. The Left (Die Linke is a German political party that came into being on 16 June 2007 as a merger of The Left Party/PDS the former 6%) | |
| + | Alliance '90/Greens: | 51 | (8. The Alliance '90/The Greens ( Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) the German Green party, is a Political party in Germany whose regional 3%) | |
| + | Independents/No parliamentary group: | 2 | (0. In Politics, an independent is a Politician who is not Affiliated with any Political party. 3%) |
Number of the Land list seats won by each party For a list of current members, see the List of Bundestag Members. This is a list of members of the 16th Bundestag - the Parliament of Germany.
| Historic seat distribution in the German Bundestag (at the beginning of each session) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bundestag | Session | Seats | CDU/CSU | SPD | FDP | Alliance '90 / The Greens1 | The Left2 | German Party | Others |
| 1st Bundestag | 1949–1953 | 402 | 139 | 131 | 52 | – | – | 17 | 633 |
| 2nd Bundestag | 1953–1957 | 487 | 243 | 151 | 48 | – | – | 15 | 304 |
| 3rd Bundestag | 1957–1961 | 497 | 270 | 169 | 41 | – | – | 17 | – |
| 4th Bundestag | 1961–1965 | 499 | 242 | 190 | 67 | – | – | – | – |
| 5th Bundestag | 1965–1969 | 496 | 245 | 202 | 49 | – | – | – | – |
| 6th Bundestag | 1969–1972 | 496 | 242 | 224 | 30 | – | – | – | – |
| 7th Bundestag | 1972–1976 | 496 | 225 | 230 | 41 | – | – | – | – |
| 8th Bundestag | 1976–1980 | 496 | 243 | 214 | 39 | – | – | – | – |
| 9th Bundestag | 1980–1983 | 497 | 226 | 218 | 53 | – | – | – | – |
| 10th Bundestag | 1983–1987 | 498 | 244 | 193 | 34 | 27 | – | – | – |
| 11th Bundestag | 1987–1990 | 497 | 223 | 186 | 46 | 42 | – | – | – |
| 12th Bundestag | 1990–1994 | 662 | 319 | 239 | 79 | 8 | 17 | – | – |
| 13th Bundestag | 1994–1998 | 672 | 294 | 252 | 47 | 49 | 30 | – | – |
| 14th Bundestag | 1998–2002 | 669 | 245 | 298 | 43 | 47 | 36 | – | – |
| 15th Bundestag | 2002–2005 | 603 | 248 | 251 | 47 | 55 | 2 | – | – |
| 16th Bundestag | since 2005 | 614 | 226 | 222 | 61 | 51 | 54 | – | – |
1: 1983 to 1990 The Greens, 1990 to 1994 Alliance 90, since 1994 Alliance 90/The Greens
2 1990 to 2005 PDS (Party of Democratic Socialism), 2005 to 2007 The Left Party.PDS, since 2007 The Left
3 BP 17, KPD 15, WAV 12, Centre Party 10, DKP-DRP 5, SSW 1, Independents 3
4 GB-BHE 27, Centre Party 3
For detailed information on particular sessions of the Bundestag, please refer to the List of German Bundestage. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. The Free Democratic Party ( Freie Demokratische Partei, FDP is a liberal Political party in Germany. The Alliance '90/The Greens ( Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) the German Green party, is a Political party in Germany whose regional The Left (Die Linke is a German political party that came into being on 16 June 2007 as a merger of The Left Party/PDS the former The German Party ( Deutsche Partei) is a name used by a number of German political parties in the country's history Alliance 90 ( Bündnis 90) was an alliance of three non-Communist political groups in East Germany. The Alliance '90/The Greens ( Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) the German Green party, is a Political party in Germany whose regional This article is about the party before the merger with WASG in 2007 This article is about the party before the merger with WASG in 2007 The Left (Die Linke is a German political party that came into being on 16 June 2007 as a merger of The Left Party/PDS the former The Bavaria Party (Bayernpartei is a Political party in the state of Bavaria in southern Germany. The Communist Party of Germany ( German Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands &ndash KPD) was a major political party in Germany between 1918 The German Centre Party ( Deutsche Zentrumspartei or merely Zentrum) was a Catholic political party in Germany during the Kaiserreich The South Schleswig Voter Federation ( German: Südschleswigscher Wählerverband, Danish: Sydslesvigsk Vælgerforening, North Frisian The All-German Bloc/League of Expellees and Disenfrachised ( German: Gesamtdeutscher Block/Bund der Heimatvertriebenen und Entrechteten or GB/BHE was founded in 1950 The German Centre Party ( Deutsche Zentrumspartei or merely Zentrum) was a Catholic political party in Germany during the Kaiserreich This is a list page for the individual sessions of the German Bundestag: First German Bundestag ( 1949 - 1953) Second German
| Presidents of the Bundestag | |||||
| Name | Party | Beginning of term | End of term | Length of term | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Erich Köhler* (1892–1958) | CDU | 7 September 1949 | 18 October 1950 | 1 year 1 month 11 days |
| 2 | Hermann Ehlers** (1904–1954) | CDU | 19 October 1950 | 29 October 1954 | 4 years 10 days |
| 3 | Eugen Gerstenmaier*** (1906–1986) | CDU | 16 November 1954 | 31 January 1969 | 14 years 2 months 15 days |
| 4 | Kai-Uwe von Hassel (1913–1997) | CDU | 5 February 1969 | 13 December 1972 | 3 years 10 months 8 days |
| 5 | Annemarie Renger† (1919-2008) | SPD | 13 December 1972 | 14 December 1976 | 4 years 1 day |
| 6 | Karl Carstens§ (1914–1992) | CDU | 14 December 1976 | 31 May 1979 | 2 years 5 months 17 days |
| 7 | Richard Stücklen (1916–2002) | CSU | 31 May 1979 | 29 March 1983 | 3 years 9 months 29 days |
| 8 | Rainer Barzel*** (1924–2006) | CDU | 29 March 1983 | 25 October 1984 | 1 year 6 months 26 days |
| 9 | Philipp Jenninger*** (b. Year 1892 ( MDCCCXCII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Year 1958 ( MCMLVIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 1251 BC - A Solar eclipse on this date might mark the birth of legendary Heracles at Thebes Greece. Year 1949 ( MCMXLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1009 - The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the Fatimid Year 1950 ( MCML) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1904 ( MCMIV) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting on Year 1954 ( MCMLIV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1954 Gregorian calendar) The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 202 BCE - The Battle of Zama results in the defeat of Carthage and Hannibal. Year 1950 ( MCML) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 437 - Valentinian III, Western Roman Emperor, marries Licinia Eudoxia, daughter of his cousin Theodosius II Year 1954 ( MCMLIV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1954 Gregorian calendar) Eugen Karl Albrecht Gerstenmaier ( 25 August 1906 - 13 March 1986) was a German Evangelical Theologian, resistance Year 1906 ( MCMVI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Year 1986 ( MCMLXXXVI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar) The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 534 - A second and final revision of the Codex Justinianus is published Year 1954 ( MCMLIV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1954 Gregorian calendar) Events 1504 - France cedes Naples to Aragon. 1606 - Gunpowder Plot: Guy Fawkes Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Kai-Uwe von Hassel ( 21 April 1913 - 8 May 1997) was a German politician from Schleswig-Holstein associated with the Year 1913 ( MCMXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France. Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1294 - Saint Celestine V abdicates the papacy after only five months Celestine hoped to return to his previous life Year 1972 ( MCMLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Annemarie Renger ( October 7, 1919 &ndash March 3, 2008) (born Annemarie Wildung was a German politician and the first Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1294 - Saint Celestine V abdicates the papacy after only five months Celestine hoped to return to his previous life Year 1972 ( MCMLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1287 - St Lucia's flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses killing over 50000 people Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Karl Carstens ( December 14, 1914 - May 29, 1992) was a German politician Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 1287 - St Lucia's flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses killing over 50000 people Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Year 1979 ( MCMLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1979 Gregorian calendar) Richard Stücklen ( 20 August 1916 - 2 May 2002) was a German politician of the CSU. Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1279 BC - Rameses II (The Great (19th dynasty becomes pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. Year 1979 ( MCMLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1979 Gregorian calendar) Events 1461 - Wars of the Roses: Battle of Towton - Edward of York defeats Queen Margaret to become King Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) Rainer Candidus Barzel ( June 20 1924 &ndash August 26 2006) was a German Politician of the CDU. Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 1461 - Wars of the Roses: Battle of Towton - Edward of York defeats Queen Margaret to become King Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) Events 1147 - The Portuguese, under Afonso I, and Crusaders from England and Flanders conquer Lisbon after a Year 1984 ( MCMLXXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar) Philipp-Hariolf Jenninger (born 10 June 1932) is a German politician of the CDU. 1932) | CDU | 5 November 1984 | 11 November 1988 | 4 years 6 days |
| 10 | Rita Süssmuth (b. Year 1932 ( MCMXXXII) was a Leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 1499 - Publication of the Catholicon in Treguier ( Brittany) Year 1984 ( MCMLXXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar) Events 308 - The Congress of Carnuntum: Attempting to keep peace within the Roman Empire, the leaders of the Tetrarchy declare Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) Rita Süssmuth (born 17 February, 1937 in Wuppertal) is a German politician and a member of the Christian Democratic Union ( CDU) 1937) | CDU | 25 November 1988 | 26 October 1998 | 9 years 11 months 1 day |
| 11 | Wolfgang Thierse (b. Year 1937 ( MCMXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 1034 - Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots dies Donnchad, the Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) Events 740 - An Earthquake strikes Constantinople, causing much damage and death Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) 1943) | SPD | 26 October 1998 | 18 October 2005 | 6 years 11 months 22 days |
| 12 | Norbert Lammert (b. Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 740 - An Earthquake strikes Constantinople, causing much damage and death Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) Events 1009 - The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the Fatimid Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Dr Norbert Lammert (born November 16, 1948 in Bochum) is a German Politician ( CDU) 1948) | CDU | 18 October 2005 | ||
*resigned for medical reasons
**died in office
***resigned for political reasons
†first woman and Social Democrat to hold the post
§ resigned when he became President of Germany
The most important organizational structures within the Bundestag are parliamentary groups (Fraktionen; sing. Year 1948 ( MCMXLVIII) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Events 1009 - The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the Fatimid Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The President of Germany (deutscher Bundespräsident is Germany 's Head of state. Parliamentary group and parliamentary party are terms used to refer to the representation of a Political party or Electoral fusion of parties in a Fraktion), which are formed by political parties represented in the chamber which have gained more than 5% of the total votes; CDU and CSU have always formed a single united Fraktion. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. The size of a party's Fraktion determines the extent of its representation on legislative committees, the time slots allotted for speaking, the number of committee chairs it can hold, and its representation in executive bodies of the Bundestag. The Fraktionen, not the members, receive the bulk of government funding for legislative and administrative activities.
The leadership of each Fraktion consists of a parliamentary party leader, several deputy leaders, and an executive committee. The leadership's major responsibilities are to represent the Fraktion, enforce party discipline, and orchestrate the party's parliamentary activities. The members of each Fraktion are distributed among working groups focused on specific policy-related topics such as social policy, economics, and foreign policy. Working Group can mean Working group, an interdisciplinary group of researchers or Working Group (dogs, kennel club designation for The Fraktion meets every Tuesday afternoon in the weeks in which the Bundestag is in session to consider legislation before the Bundestag and formulate the party's position on it.
Parties which do not fulfill the criterion for being a Fraktion but which have at least three seats by direct elections (i. e. which have at least three MPs representing a certain electoral district) in the Bundestag can be granted the status of a group of the Bundestag. This applied to the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) from 1990-1998. The Left (Die Linke is a German political party that came into being on 16 June 2007 as a merger of The Left Party/PDS the former Year 1990 ( MCMXC) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar) Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) This status entails some privileges which are in general less than those of a Fraktion. In the current Bundestag, there are no such groups (the PDS only had two MPs in parliament until 2005 and was thus not even considered a group anymore; the party has now returned to the Bundestag with full Fraktion status).
The Bundestag's executive bodies include the Council of Elders and the Presidium. The Council of Elders (Ältestenrat is a joint deliberative body which includes the following members President; Vice presidents The Presidium of the German Bundestag consists of the President of the Bundestag and a variable number (currently 4 of Vice-Presidents of the Bundestag The council consists of the Bundestag leadership, together with the most senior representatives of each Fraktion, with the number of these representatives tied to the strength of the party in the chamber. The council is the coordination hub, determining the daily legislative agenda and assigning committee chairpersons based on party representation. The council also serves as an important forum for interparty negotiations on specific legislation and procedural issues. The Presidium is responsible for the routine administration of the Bundestag, including its clerical and research activities. It consists of the chamber's president (usually elected from the largest Fraktion) and vice presidents (one from each Fraktion).
Most of the legislative work in the Bundestag is the product of standing committees, which exist largely unchanged throughout one legislative period. The number of committees approximates the number of federal ministries, and the titles of each are roughly similar (e. g. , defense, agriculture, and labor). Between 1987 and 1990, the term of the eleventh Bundestag, there were twenty-one standing committees. The distribution of committee chairs and the membership of each committee reflect the relative strength of the various parties in the chamber. In the eleventh Bundestag, the CDU/CSU chaired eleven committees, the SPD eight, the FDP one, and the environmentalist party, the Greens (Die Grünen), one. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. The Free Democratic Party ( Freie Demokratische Partei, FDP is a liberal Political party in Germany. The Alliance '90/The Greens ( Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) the German Green party, is a Political party in Germany whose regional Members of the opposition party can chair a significant number of standing committees. These committees have either a small staff or no staff at all.
Politics of Germany takes place in a framework of a federal parliamentary representative democratic Republic, whereby the Federal Chancellor The Bundesrat ("federal council" or "upper house of German parliament" is the representation of the 16 Federal States ( Bundesländer) of A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system.