tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13780025835670164232011-07-07T20:09:01.958-04:00AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.comBlogger561100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-75437968846148771722009-10-21T10:13:00.003-04:002009-10-21T10:26:04.498-04:00

Now that the election has been decided, this blog will cease to have new posts. However, as there are plenty of issues that remain for the new CDU/CSU-FDP coalition (including their own coalition negotiations), AICGS will continue to produce its traditional knowledge and insights on our website, http://www.aicgs.org/. Please check our home page regularly for new analysis of the election results

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-46774447772489355832009-10-14T06:40:00.003-04:002009-10-14T06:51:14.783-04:00

At their party convention in November 2008, The Greens approved a new agenda called the “New Green Deal”. Referring to Roosevelt’s New Deal, they claimed to establish a package of economic programs in order to overcome the crisis. Particularly, it included social and ecological investments and tried hard to sound neither too socialistic nor too liberal. The Greens started the 2009 election

OFnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-1800185767468008662009-10-09T05:11:00.002-04:002009-10-09T10:24:05.590-04:00

There is a new 'magic word' in the world of politics: credibility. It was, of course, always important that voters believe in the word of politicians. When the German Liberals accepted a coalition under the chancellor Konrad Adenauer (CDU) in 1961 although they promised in their campaign to prevent Adenauer, for example, this corrupted the mutual trust of voters for the Liberals for years. But

Michael Weiglhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14132029681712851738noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-80536226594803673352009-10-05T09:54:00.003-04:002009-10-05T16:28:08.003-04:00

There might be three winners of the Bundestag election: The FDP, “Die Linke” and Angela Merkel. The FDP got its best result in history and managed to get back into government after eleven years in opposition. “Die Linke” conquered large parts of Eastern Germany and got over five percentages in Western Germany, too; thus, Lafontaine/Gysi’s party definitely became a part of the new German party

OFnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-43933414396295235822009-10-02T10:31:00.002-04:002009-10-02T10:37:30.302-04:00

On election night last Sunday, I was fortunate enough to make it to a couple of parties. First, I stopped by the Left Party event, which was open to all comers (but they charged for beer and pretzels) at the Kulturbrauerei in eastern Prenzlauer Berg. Despite the party's 19th century slogans, everything was very 21st century with multiple television screens to show the first results and numerous

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-4183995244886777342009-09-29T10:13:00.002-04:002009-09-29T10:19:14.137-04:00

The ballots are counted and the German people have spoken: For the next four years, Germany will be governed by a center-right coalition between the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) and the Liberals (FDP). Why did Germans vote the way they did and what role did economic and foreign policy issues play? What does this mean for German domestic policy? How will foreign policy change under a new foreign

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-80196873440737836472009-09-28T14:33:00.005-04:002009-09-28T14:40:02.000-04:00

The votes have been counted, and result is a black-yellow coalition between Angela Merkel's CDU/CSU and Guido Westerwelle's FDP. Please check back for analysis of the results here on the blog!Image copyright Der Spiegel.

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-69182159754893133962009-09-27T14:30:00.028-04:002009-09-27T15:57:15.600-04:00

It is about 8:30 in the evening in Germany and I am writing from the Bundespresseamt, as the major party leaders are engaged in an election postmortem on the "Berliner Runde." Of course the final results are not yet in, but everyone (including the party leaders) already have called this one.And there will be a (partial) change in government, with a likely majority for the CDU/CSU-FDP--even

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-49979902352857004442009-09-26T19:02:00.005-04:002009-09-27T09:12:35.177-04:00

So, this is election day. Finally. Being both a political junkie and the proud product of our post-war West German democracy (even granting myself the occasional bout of that specific, timid patriotism that Germans have developed for themselves and which they still find so difficult to embrace), election day always gives me a slightly elevated feeling of eminence, duty and suspense. I imagine

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-8087172166313304842009-09-26T12:01:00.004-04:002009-09-26T12:25:16.044-04:00

Today, I attended the last big CDU rally in Berlin at the Arena in Treptow. The venue was full, but the average age of the audience was probably about 60 years old (I don't know what this says about the CDU's or Germany's demographics). In any case, Merkel arrived shortly after the event began and engaged in a rather weird "chat" with Ronald Pofalla and two moderators. Then we went live to Munich

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-66487874430448947792009-09-25T16:02:00.006-04:002009-09-26T12:01:03.758-04:00

I have been in Germany since Thursday on a study tour organized by the International Association for the Study of German Politics and the DAAD. There are 54 academics, mainly from the UK and USA here, engaged in a variety of election-related activities--political rallies, one-on-one meetings with politicians and roundtables with electoral researchers and pollsters. Of course, the best thing about

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-14999796048570859692009-09-25T13:11:00.003-04:002009-09-25T14:00:13.253-04:00

To reach out for voters is at the core of a political campaign. Where and when this is done is different in Germany and the US. One reason is of course that in German campaigns much less money is spent. But there are other reasons, too and the one I want to talk about today is a rather strong incentive: the electoral system. The US majority system leads to different campaign styles than the

OFnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-1914665005088052352009-09-25T08:38:00.007-04:002009-09-26T19:13:26.295-04:00

Now that the pre-election period is drawing to a close, let's take a glimpse at what to expect after the big day. As I wrote in this blog earlier, post-election Germany will be a much bigger source of political drama than it is now -- regardless of who is going to win on Sunday. So what will keep the country and the next government occupied?1. The Budget SqueezeA handful of leading politicians (

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-37004754184959208562009-09-24T17:53:00.003-04:002009-09-25T09:49:58.518-04:00

With only three days to the election, a new topic has quite unexpectedly emerged and is dominating both the public and the academic debate on possible outcomes of next Sunday's vote. It's not a policy issue, it's not the performance of the top candidates, it's not even the well-known coalition game that now equally grabs the attention of politicians, the media and other observers. Instead, almost

JShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05257842154567051525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-19236838659575035182009-09-24T08:23:00.008-04:002009-09-24T09:28:29.057-04:00

Much has been said about the restrained tone of the 2009 election campaign. However, one voice could be heard loud and clear: The Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU). Horst Seehofer, party chairman and Bavarian Minister President, runs a campaign which has not always been in accordance with the strategy of Angela Merkel and the CDU. On the contrary, the CSU repeatedly provoked with

MGhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00543038605647092677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-30991662616939297252009-09-23T13:20:00.001-04:002009-09-23T13:21:09.355-04:00

As the journalists of the world unite in Berlin for a quick glimpse at the wonders and oddities of the German electoral process ("Überhangmandate" easily being the total favourite of everybody I have talked to), one question is being asked more frequently again: What does all this mean for German foreign policy?The quick answer would be: not much. There does exist a pretty stable cross-party

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-18647035062344808772009-09-22T15:22:00.002-04:002009-09-22T16:56:15.544-04:00

Barack Obama’s legendary campaign in last year’s race for the White House was called the first ‘internet election’, as it mobilized volunteers at grass-roots level and raised the bulk of funds via the digital war room ‘myBarackObama.com’. It was on myBO, where the enthusiasm for America’s first internet president took its starting point. Hence, German campaign managers have been trying hard to

OFnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-35318903324759140462009-09-22T13:50:00.003-04:002009-09-22T16:52:17.816-04:00

I have long thought that U.S. President Barack Obama has been committing one of cardinal sins of political life--actually believing his own rhetoric. And the degree to which much of the American and global media aid him in this process, taking what he says as the gospel truth, never ceases to amaze me. One such belief is Obama's "magisterial" use of the Internet and social networking sites in

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-76274237474920537642009-09-21T15:11:00.001-04:002009-09-21T15:14:07.363-04:00

This weekend the Free Democrats and the Green Party held party conventions in Potsdam and Berlin to send a last-minute signal to voters before next Sunday’s election. Beyond the slogans “Germany Can Do Better” and “The Path Out of the Crisis is Green,” the main message of this weekend was about possible coalitions. As a consequence there is little room for maneuvering left if all parties keep

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-5707344665087136722009-09-20T10:41:00.007-04:002009-09-21T09:35:02.830-04:00

German feuilletons are currently engaged in a heated debate on the role of mass media and politics in the era of Web 2.0. It has been ignited by the ‘internet manifesto’ published by the stars of the local blogosphere (such as Markus Beckedahl, Sascha Lobo) just in time for the conclusion of the election to the German Bundestag. The German successor to the famous ‘cluetrain manifesto’ comes up

OFnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-28006933142607162352009-09-18T08:09:00.004-04:002009-09-18T09:21:44.902-04:00

Nearly a week has passed since the German TV debate. Newspapers wrote about self-centered interrogators, a shy chancellor and a surprisingly persuasive but altogether still too weak vice chancellor. Many called the debate boring, others even useless. Particularly, it has been criticized that the debate was of no value due to the lack of the opposition leaders. Some pundits did not identify a

OFnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-3784910538542306102009-09-17T04:55:00.008-04:002009-09-17T08:13:31.615-04:00

Many observers had hoped that the eagerly anticipated Merkel-Steinmeier TV debate last Sunday would insert some freshness into the campaign, and at first it looked like it would. But it now turns out that instead, the battle for the Bundestag has just turned from dull to silly. And even though some observers might consider this progress, less cynical analysts are rubbing their eyes: what's

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-71185333899881568822009-09-16T17:59:00.007-04:002009-09-17T14:22:28.492-04:00

Party competition is an essential part of democracy. For a free and fair election it is critical that every party can take part in the ballot. In Germany, a council called "Bundeswahlausschuss" (Federal Electoral Committee) decides which parties may participate. If the party has at least five deputies in either the Bundestag or any of the sixteen state parliaments, they automatically stand for

OFnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-75962009275326174502009-09-15T15:12:00.003-04:002009-09-15T15:45:24.263-04:00

Angela Merkel once delivered a speech as opposition leader at Georgetown University in which she outlined a more pro-Bush, pro-Iraq war foreign policy. During the Q &A I was lucky to ask her a question about how she justified such a stance in light of the poll numbers showing over 90% of Germans against the invasion of Saddam Hussein's regime. I don't remember all of the specifics of her response

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-71500192127572954622009-09-15T09:17:00.001-04:002009-09-15T09:35:14.310-04:00

The story of the TV-debate can be told with only few words: In the first half Frank-Walter Steinmeier scored with statements on social justice. In the second half, when the economic crisis was the main issue, Merkel was better than her opponent. In the end there was no real winner and it is not likely that this debate was a breakthrough for one of the candidates (see the article from Jan Techau).

Michael Weiglhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14132029681712851738noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-21320657337573538072009-09-13T17:57:00.005-04:002009-09-14T12:16:28.669-04:00

Here are some quick observations from tonight's much-anticipated TV debate between chancellor Angela Merkel and vice-chancellor Frank-Walter Steinmeier, her main contender in the Battle for the Bundestag and the Chancellory.1. Polls conducted immediately after the duel have produced contradictory results. While a ZDF poll saw Steinmeier as the winner (albeit by a narrow margin), a survey by

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-28622502179628197982009-09-11T16:30:00.002-04:002009-09-11T16:32:22.360-04:00

The consensus among pundits and journalists is that the 2009 Bundestag campaign is one of the most boring and inconsequential ever. At first, folks seemed to think that this was a temporary situation that surely would change once the "hot" phase set in. But now, just over two weeks before voting booths open, it is pretty clear that things will not change.Of course, the media have tried to make

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-15408671095513287452009-09-11T14:29:00.001-04:002009-09-11T14:31:33.305-04:00

With little more than two weeks before election day, three things are keeping campaign observers busy at the moment.First of all, out of nowhere, Die Linke has gained up to four (4!) points in recent opinion polls while SPD, Greens and CDU are losing a point each and the FDP remains stable. Where does this mini-surge come from? Some observers have suggested that the recently flared-up Afghanistan

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-26040349462354141662009-09-10T08:18:00.003-04:002009-09-10T09:40:53.977-04:00

From the perspective of an ordinary voter, the current election campaign is fairly boring because the outcome seems pretty obvious. On the one hand, the conservative and the liberal parties, CDU/CSU and FDP, would like to form the next government and may perhaps actually win the necessary majority of seats. On the other hand, there is no single party or other coalition model both willing and

JShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05257842154567051525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-29275685125467559372009-09-09T16:56:00.005-04:002009-09-09T17:00:59.604-04:00

For decades Germany has been running a trade surplus, which is caused by its strength in exports. But as the diagram below shows, it was only in the last couple of years that the surplus really skyrocketed. Its export strength earned the country the nickname 'export world champion.' However, recently China overtook Germany in this discipline and while some see this as a sign for a loss of

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-62447332202479451932009-09-08T08:03:00.003-04:002009-09-08T08:30:00.808-04:00

Just a quick addition to yesterday's posting below. After last Friday's air strike in Afghanistan, the German parliament squeezed a special session into an already tight schedule today to let the chancellor, the foreign minister, and the defense minister explain the incident. Merkel used her speech to go into the offensive by announcing a joint German-French-British initiative for an

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-51493922099501430292009-09-07T07:09:00.008-04:002009-09-07T12:21:38.945-04:00

After Friday's German-led air strike on two hijacked fuel trucks near Kunduz in Afghanistan, ISAF, the Afghan government, Germany's Ministry of Defense, peace activists, and basically everybody else are still at loggerheads over assessing the impact of the attack, which killed dozens of Taliban and an unknown number of civilians. Less than three weeks before the general election, you would think

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-87622903941612390772009-09-06T10:34:00.003-04:002009-09-08T11:04:52.335-04:00

This week one of the most popular German talk shows, named Hart aber fair (“Tough but Fair”), has demonstrated quite plainly the prevailing constellation of the party system: Renate Künast, one of the Green party’s front-runners and chair(wo)man of the parliamentary group, was sitting in the very center of the discussants. Sigmar Gabriel (SPD) and Oskar Lafontaine (The Left) were placed on her

MGhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00543038605647092677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-39362764012753123672009-09-03T10:07:00.004-04:002009-09-03T13:17:49.783-04:00

There has been a lot of fretting about the evolution of the German party system--mainly by publications like the influential Economist newsmagazine and academics. Many articles have been published about the decline of the catch-all Volksparteien. In fact, the share of the vote commanded by the SPD and CDU/CSU has fallen back to the level of 1949 with less than 70% of the total vote in 2005.

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-68308365669671903272009-09-01T12:46:00.001-04:002009-09-01T12:48:14.550-04:00

It has become a tradition for pundits to obsess about the latest state Landtag elections as barometers of national political sentiment and future national results. Certainly, state results just a month before a Bundestag election take on even more significance--as the results in the Saarland, Thuringia and Saxony last weekend attest. I also told myself that I would not buy into the media-hype,

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-55567665887988610052009-08-30T14:55:00.005-04:002009-08-31T03:53:10.883-04:00

When it comes to assessing the impact of tonight's state elections in Thuringia, Saxony, and in Saarland on the national elections in September, five things seem to stand out at this early stage:1. The Social Democrats are the party that remains under the biggest pressure to perform. Only at first sight do tonight's results look good for Steinmeier and the SPD. In Saxony, the party came out of

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-60095666850388104312009-08-29T06:07:00.005-04:002009-08-31T12:07:38.561-04:00

This Sunday, August 30, the state parliaments (Landtage) of Saxony, Thuringia, and Saarland are elected. Only four weeks before the votes for the next Bundestag are cast, these state level elections of course draw much public attention and receive significant media coverage even in nation-wide newspapers and TV programs as they are perceived to be a testrun for what will happen on September 27 at

JShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05257842154567051525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-65136048215916981392009-08-27T14:24:00.000-04:002009-08-27T14:25:20.284-04:00

Even though the election is only one month away, the campaigns seem to have difficulties getting into full swing. Instead of discussing differing plans for how the next government wants to lead Germany to higher employment and growth rates, two issues dominate the domestic policy debate in these days: One circles around the wasteful spending of a few thousand Euros through the potential misuse of

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-20693409685796597892009-08-26T05:19:00.007-04:002009-08-26T11:59:06.231-04:00

After the Nazis had courted the exiled last German emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II., to receive his blessings for their newly established regime, he famously quipped in a letter: "I tried to tell them damn fools that Germany can only be governed federally." Indeed, the provinces matter in Germany. So it makes perfect sense to have a look at the Länder every once in a while to understand what's really

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-68806740916242585752009-08-25T06:39:00.010-04:002009-09-16T18:06:27.805-04:00

In current polls, the alleged "small" Free Democratic Party (FDP) is estimated to get up to 16 percent of the votes in the upcoming elections (Infratest dimap). Being a rather middle-class party, the FDP naturally benefits from the CDU/CSU's weakness by attracting disappointed conservative voters. However, the success of an economic liberal party in times of a financial crisis -- many call it

OFnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-21009255511481380402009-08-24T12:19:00.004-04:002009-08-25T10:57:39.151-04:00

Several interesting things have emerged since my previous postings. First, in reference to the SPD's dismal polling numbers and how Schröder did better than predicted on election day in 2002 and 2005, there is new evidence that the party's support may be underestimated again this year. According to an interview with renowned pollster Jürgen Falter, many of the undecided voters this year are SPD

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-39763242399385409492009-08-24T10:04:00.003-04:002009-08-24T11:22:08.256-04:00

A new star was born when Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg became Minister for Economics and Technology in February 2009. A rather young man from the CSU in Franconia (Bavaria), who by then was mostly known only to politicos in the foreign and security policy arena, was appointed to this post right in the middle of a global crisis. Within only a few months he became Germany's most popular politician,

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-79885582812095535112009-08-21T04:01:00.004-04:002009-08-25T10:58:42.606-04:00

If you are looking for an issue that dominates the campaign for the German Bundestag 2009, you are searching in vain. There is not a single one, but many different ones. Families wish for a more family-friendly environment, farmers hope for better prices of their produce, senior citizens complain about the low level of pensions, young people hope for an improvement of conditions at universities

Michael Weiglhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14132029681712851738noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-41160464500477444372009-08-19T13:39:00.004-04:002009-08-25T11:00:46.226-04:00

Returning to the issue of campaign posters, controversy over one that I previously mentioned is continuing. The poster in question comes from the Greens in a western German town (Kaarst near Düsseldorf) and depicts a naked African woman from behind being held by a white woman. The text says: "The only reason to vote black" (Der einzige Grund, schwarz zu wählen). From one perspective, this is a

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-26722099872702701282009-08-19T05:27:00.004-04:002009-08-19T05:31:39.043-04:00

Earlier this year, the SPD's leading pack looked like a dream team: Steinmeier, the uncharismatic but competent and modern third-way Social Democrat as the candidate for the chancellory. Given the Germans' knack for uncharismatic leadership, not such a bad choice, you would think. Then, as his most important companion, Franz Müntefering, the party's rather rustic, old-style, plain-speaking

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-48371528391381901972009-08-16T16:07:00.003-04:002009-08-16T16:10:38.073-04:00

It's Sunday and, thus, it seems appropriate to delve into another Germany political tradition--the Sunday question (Sonntagsfrage): "If the Bundestag election were next Sunday, for which party would you vote?" All of the most recent results continue to see a bare majority (51%) for a CDU/CSU-FDP coalition, mainly because the FDP is up by 2% (according to ARD Deutschlandtrend, http://

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-26579504046549826062009-08-14T06:20:00.002-04:002009-08-17T02:23:12.943-04:00

It's a German tradition that elections for the Bundestag take place in late summer (normally end of September). Therefore, there is usually a lack of attention for election campaigns due to summer holidays which end only shortly before the election. Furthermore, the German parliamentary system also contributes to short-term campaigns. While in the US primary elections and party conventions

Michael Weiglhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14132029681712851738noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-31064601624557795542009-08-13T10:38:00.002-04:002009-08-13T10:41:11.318-04:00

It seems that Germany's political parties have copied many things from the scrap book of last year's Obama campaign. One thing in particular that the Social Democrats and their candidate for the chancellery Frank-Walter Steinmeier took over is the promise that his policy will produce 4 million new jobs by 2020. In his PLAN D (or Deutschland-Plan) Steinmeier promises full employment, a goal that

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-13303208592538355792009-08-12T06:12:00.003-04:002009-08-12T06:31:23.642-04:00

Much has been made of the decline of Germany's major Volksparteien (catch-all-parties) in recent years. This week's Economist is reporting on what has been the subject of much debate in Germany for quite a while: what future for the German party system (and thus for the entire political system) with CDU (Conservatives) and SPD (Social Democrats) in steady, though somewhat unevenly distributed,

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-76444961785293645832009-08-11T15:22:00.007-04:002009-08-12T12:07:14.363-04:00

In the early months of 2008--in the midst of the Democratic primary battle between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, a gay German (or German gay?) friend of mine invited me out for drinks at a bar in his neighborhood in Washington. It was a special night--when only show tunes are played--campy fun. But on this evening, the bar had a special guest--some performer (whose name escapes me but she

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-79387579533702299522009-08-11T05:53:00.006-04:002009-09-16T18:06:42.356-04:00

The unveiling of Steinmeier's SPD-”Kompetenzteam” (shadow cabinet) was overshadowed by an embarrassing episode involving Ulla Schmidt. The Federal Health Minister apparently used her staff car during vacations in Spain, where it was stolen. What was the evaluation of the public of this incident and the resulting exclusion of Ulla Schmidt from the Kompetenzteam? What were the impacts on the

OFnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-63276423658463864202009-08-10T11:29:00.005-04:002009-08-10T14:46:56.025-04:00

One mantra in U.S. politics is that electoral outcomes are greatly conditioned by the state of the economy (the Carvillian "it's the economy, stupid"). I don't think that German elections are as closely coupled to the economy as in America--in the "grand coalition state" it is more difficult to disaggregate responsibility than in a presidential system with single party control of the executive

ELhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09742934458061425106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-70554306618792106112009-08-07T11:51:00.008-04:002009-08-31T11:21:34.623-04:00

It is a well known phenomenon that people feel the need of a strong and steady leadership in times of a crisis. In this sense the current crisis may open a window of opportunity for the election campaigns of the governing parties, first and foremost for Chancellor Angela Merkel. A large majority is satisfied with Merkel’s performance in these days. When it comes to the so-called “K-Question” (

MGhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00543038605647092677noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-30455237949543289652009-08-05T09:43:00.010-04:002009-08-05T10:08:10.656-04:00

Let me start my part of this blog with a small but significant piece of good news for German foreign policy. Peter Struck, former defence minister and currently the still influential head of the Social Democrat's parliamentary group in the Bundestag, said in an interview for Berliner Zeitung today, that Germany's military engagement in Afghanistan could well last for another decade. While this is

Jan Techaunoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-73757638141364808542009-08-04T14:37:00.002-04:002009-08-04T14:41:20.320-04:00

The grand coalition started four years ago by revealing a lie. While during the campaign the CDU/CSU spoke the partial truth to voters and proposed an increase of the value added tax (VAT) by two percentage points, the Social Democrats promised not to increase the VAT at all if they were elected. While I assumed back then that the political compromise would be to increase the VAT by 1 percent,

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1378002583567016423.post-38838209805653531332009-08-03T15:56:00.006-04:002009-08-03T16:20:17.068-04:00

Welcome to The Battle for the Bundestag 2009 – AICGS’ Election Blog on the German federal election. We are excited to provide you with this platform for insights into the campaigns, knowledge of the issues, and discussion of the election. Several bloggers and one photo blogger will bring you updates from Berlin and the United States on the run-up to the German election; once the votes are tallied

AICGS Election Blog 2009http://www.blogger.com/profile/15368886423906236790noreply@blogger.com0