FDP base narrowly votes against leaving the traffic light coalition
Accordingly, 26,058 of the approximately 72,000 members took part in the non-binding vote. With the vote that has now been submitted, the attempt by the party's internal "Ampel" opponents to organize a majority against government participation among the FDP base has failed.
The survey was initiated by 598 party members, mainly from the Kassel district association, who were dissatisfied with participation in the traffic light coalition. The party leadership had campaigned for the party to remain in the coalition.
Even though the vote was close, leading FDP representatives interpreted it in initial reactions as confirmation of continued government participation. The initiators, on the other hand, interpreted the vote as evidence of grassroots discontent with the "traffic light".
"The survey has made it clear: the FDP wants to take responsibility for our country and shape it," explained Secretary General Djir-Sarai. "The party members want to see a clear liberal signature in government policy."
In contrast, initiator Matthias Nölke from the Kassel FDP spoke to Bild of a "clear sign of how great the dissatisfaction in the party is". The result must "be taken into account by the party leadership and this must be reflected in the future work of the FDP in the federal government ".
FDP party deputy leader Wolfgang Kubicki came to a different conclusion: in view of the turnout of less than 40 percent, he spoke of a "silent majority" that apparently did not want to leave the government. "The fact is now: the party wants the FDP to continue to participate in the government with a clear majority," Kubicki told the Funke newspapers. He called on the FDP to present a more united front than before: "The genocide must stop."
Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) wrote in the online service X (formerly Twitter) that the result was a "mandate and incentive to work even harder on our projects". However, there is now clarity about the support for government participation. Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann (FDP) wrote that the result shows that a majority of the FDP base wants the party to continue to take on responsibility.
FDP member of parliament Frank Schäffler was more critical. He saw the result as a "clear warning shot". He wrote on X: "We can't carry on as before. The FDP must stand up more clearly for its positions and oppose the 'greening' of politics." Schäffler had initiated an ultimately failed FDP membership vote against the ESM euro bailout fund in 2010.
The deadline for taking part in the online survey, which was launched two weeks ago, ended on Monday afternoon. The question was: "Should the FDP end the coalition with the SPD and Greens as part of the federal government?" Members were able to answer yes or no.
The FDP's constitution stipulates that 500 signatures from members are sufficient to hold a non-binding survey of the party's 72,000 members. Secretary General Djir-Sarai explained: "No other party represented in the German Bundestag has a comparable low-threshold and easy-to-initiate opportunity to participate."
According to the party, all members of the FDP who were registered as members with an email address in the membership administration on December 14 at the latest were eligible to vote. According to the party, this applied to 65,900 members who were now allowed to take part in the survey.
The CDU/CSU sees the federal government in a deep crisis following the narrow FDP vote. "The FDP is completely torn apart and therefore unable to act in the long term," CSU General Secretary Martin Huber told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper on Tuesday. "A narrow majority is clinging on to retaining power and is thus missing an opportunity for an urgently needed new start."
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Source: www.stern.de
