German Election Results

[Jo Sharp]

Exit polls showing Frau Merkel scoring around 42%, but her coalition partners FDP hovering on 5% which could see them out of the Bundestag altogether. The sensational news is that the anti-euro AfD might scrape over 5% which, given they only formed a few months ago, is a bit of an earthquake for the country.

 

[Martin D]

I know, watching closely tschuss

 

[Jo Sharp]

No majority for Merkel, FDP out.....now the back room deals will be hammered out to find a govt. Democracy?

 

[Markus S]

And how else would you want a government to be formed?

 

[Jo Sharp]

By the Party which gets the most votes, not the one with the least.

 

[Markus S]

Well, that's what's going to happen, isn't it? The CDU will open talks with SPD and Greens and see which of them they can get to form a coalition with. Both would very much be junior, which is why they are both reluctant to enter a coalition. Partys which form coalitions with Mrs Merkel tend to lose the next election; see SPD 2009 and FDP 2013.

On the other hand, there will have to be a government, won't there.

 

[Jo Sharp]

You could end up with red, red,green a coalition of the 3 losing parties.

 

[Markus S]

No we won't.

 

[Greg]

No majority for Merkel, FDP out.....now the back room deals will be hammered out to find a govt. Democracy?

If not democracy, what would you define it as?

 

[Jo Sharp]

Why should a party with only 8% of the vote determine who forms a govt and no doubt dictate part of the programme?

 

[Greg]

Why should a party with only 8% of the vote determine who forms a govt and no doubt dictate part of the programme?

Jo, you seem to present the concept of collaboration with a deliberate spin implying the smaller party is somehow the controlling party. This doesn't make sense.

 

[stevec67]

A party with 8% of the vote has a place as a minority decision maker, what's the problem? I have no problem with them having 8% of the power, seems reasonable to me. Rather like our lot, the majority party will railroad through their decidions and the weaker partner will get odd bits and pieces through following a good deal of haggling.

 

[Markus S]

It seems this will take a while. The entire leadership of the Greens is stepping down, the SPD will talk about its options at a conference next weekend. So the CDU has nobody to talk with and will have to wait.

 

[Jo Sharp]

It seems this will take a while. The entire leadership of the Greens is stepping down, the SPD will talk about its options at a conference next weekend. So the CDU has nobody to talk with and will have to wait.

Wow, so the Greens in coalition will be with people that nobody voted for? They get in to parliament by being appointed from a party list!

 

[Joe Hutch]

I'd simply say that Germany has been, on the whole, far better governed than the UK in the post-war period, and not worry too much about the minutiae of how its governments are formed.

 

[mudlark]

Our joyful system got a BNP twerp elected as an MEP.

 

[MikeMA]

I'd simply say that Germany has been, on the whole, far better governed than the UK in the post-war period, and not worry too much about the minutiae of how its governments are formed.

Very true. And coalition government is accepted by the German electorate without the same level of vilification being heaped on the junior partner(s) as happens here.

 

[Jo Sharp]

Very true. And coalition government is accepted by the German electorate without the same level of vilification being heaped on the junior partner(s) as happens here.

Really? So explain why the FDP dropped their vote by 60% compared to the last election and have now dropped out of parliament? If that is not vilification, then I don't know what is!

 

[MikeMA]

Really? So explain why the FDP dropped their vote by 60% compared to the last election and have now dropped out of parliament? If that is not vilification, then I don't know what is!

It held the balance of power for an awfully long time!

 

[PsB]

Really? So explain why the FDP dropped their vote by 60% compared to the last election and have now dropped out of parliament? If that is not vilification, then I don't know what is!

Jo,
Like your other posts in this thread this seems like a total misrepresentation of the situation. The FDP just got clobbered because of a series of internal issues, among which weak and confused leadership. Not much to do with being a minority party, which is a completely normal part of parliamentary democracies with some form of proportional representation (a system clearly alien to some British voters).