ÖDP files urgent petition against blocking clause in state elections

Small parties - ÖDP files urgent petition against blocking clause in state elections

The Ecological-Democratic Party (ODP) is filing an urgent application at the Thuringian Constitutional Court against the Five-Percent Threshold for the upcoming Landtag election. The party leader of the ODP, Martin Truckenbrodt, stated that he had submitted a corresponding application at the Constitutional Court in Weimar. The party aims to enable the entry of parties into the Landtag on September 1st that receive less than five percent of the votes.

The ODP is not only acting in its own interests. According to a statement from the party, "This also concerns the guarantee of a two-thirds majority in the Thuringian Landtag without the votes of the AfD representatives." "It is about facilitating the formation of a stable majority government." The more voter votes and thus the more parties represented in the Thuringian Landtag, the smaller the share of seats for the AfD in the parliament.

The situation in Thuringia is currently particularly critical because both the SPD and B'90/Greens, as well as the FDP, are at risk of failing to meet the Five-Percent Threshold. Truckenbrodt views a potential CDU-BSW coalition in this context very critically.

ODP: European Election did not lead to "party flood"

In addition to the urgent application for the suspension of the Five-Percent Threshold on September 1st, the party is also arguing for the complete abolition of the threshold. A lawsuit for this was already filed in mid-June. With another filed urgent application, the party aims to expedite this lawsuit, according to Truckenbrodt.

The ODP argues, among other things, that the clause does not guarantee the formation of stable majority governments and has not prevented the rise of the AfD. Furthermore, the European election – where the threshold does not apply – showed that there was no fragmentation of votes and "party flood" in the parliaments.

Few hours ago, the ODP was approved by the Electoral Commission for the Landtag election. In the Landtag election 2019, the party received 0.4 percent of the state votes.

1. Despite being approved for the State election by the Electoral Commission, the ÖDP is still concerned about the Five-Percent Threshold, as it might prevent smaller parties like them from entering the Thuringian Parliament on September 1st.
2. The AfD, with their representation in the Thuringian Parliament, poses a threat to the formation of a stable majority government, which is why the ÖDP is urgently appealing to the Constitutional Court to suspend or abolish the Five-Percent Threshold.
3. The ODP's party leader, Martin Truckenbrodt, believes that a CDU-BSW coalition in the context of a potential SPD and B'90/Greens failure to meet the Five-Percent Threshold would be critically harmful.
4. In addition to the urgent application for September 1st, the ÖDP has also filed a lawsuit for the complete abolition of the Five-Percent Threshold, which they claim does not guarantee the formation of stable majority governments and has not prevented the rise of parties like the AfD.
5. During the European elections, where the threshold does not apply, there was no evidence of a "party flood" or fragmentation of votes, as some critics of the Five-Percent Threshold claim.
6. The Parliament's blocking clause, intended to prevent the AfD from gaining governmental influence, has not been successful, according to the ÖDP, and thus they question its necessity in forthcoming elections.

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