Federal election - Constitutional Court rules on breakdowns in Berlin
More than two years after the botched general election in Berlin, people in the German capital will now find out which of them will be allowed to vote again. The Federal Constitutional Court will announce on Tuesday (10:00 a.m.) in Karlsruhe whether and to what extent the election on September 26, 2021 must be repeated. The background to this is an electoral review complaint by the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag. (Ref. 2 BvC 4/23)
Election day was chaotic at many polling stations in Berlin: People had to wait a long time and queue, ballot papers were incorrect or missing altogether. Polling stations had to close temporarily or remained open until well after 6 pm.
The Bundestag received 1713 objections to the Bundestag election in the state of Berlin, including one from the Federal Returning Officer. That was around eight times as many objections as in previous elections, said Judge Peter Müller at the hearing in July. An "unprecedented number". The electoral errors could have led to people not exercising their right to vote.
In November 2022, the Bundestag decided with the votes of the SPD, Greens and FDP parliamentary groups that the election would be partially repeated. This would affect 327 of the capital's 2256 constituencies and 104 of the 1507 postal voting districts.
In the view of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, however, the decision is unlawful, partly because the Bundestag did not declare the election invalid in six constituencies contested by the Federal Returning Officer. From the point of view of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, the election would therefore have to be repeated in more constituencies.
The last possible day for a repeat election would be February 11, explained Berlin's state election officer Stephan Bröchler. However, the conditions for a new ballot have generally been in place since the summer. "The state electoral administration and districts are prepared."
During the hearing, Bröchler had pointed out that an election during the Advent period or around Christmas and New Year would be unfavorable because there could be a lack of poll workers. The presiding judge, Doris König, replied that the senate would try to take this into account in the principle of speeding up the proceedings.
The fact that so much time has already passed was explained by Judge Müller with reference to the two-stage review procedure: first it is a matter for the Bundestag and only later for the Constitutional Court. Due to the high number of objections, Müller said that even the greatest possible acceleration would not have been possible at an earlier date.
State electoral officer Bröchler had stated that he was to submit further information after the hearing. "The question was whether we could implement the decision of the Bundestag for a partial rerun," he had told the German Press Agency.
Due to the mishaps on September 26, 2021, the Berlin Constitutional Court had declared the election to the House of Representatives invalid due to "serious systemic deficiencies" and numerous electoral errors. This election was completely repeated on February 12, 2023 - with the result that a black-red coalition replaced the three-party alliance of SPD, Greens and Left Party, which had governed since 2016.
Announcement by the court Negotiation breakdown Decision by the Bundestag Information from the Bundestag on the topic
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Source: www.stern.de
