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1. Overview of German politics

Germany is a parliamentary democracy. The legislative bodies are the Bundestag, the Bundesrat, the Federal President, the Federal Government and the Federal Constitutional Court. The single constitutional body most visible to the public is the Bundestag, which is directly elected by voters every four years  .

Germany’s political system is federal and organized as a parliamentary democracy. Strong competing parties are important, which is why Germany is also known as a party democracy.

Principles in building the German political system

The central features of Germany are the inviolable structural principles of respect for human dignity (Article 1 Paragraph 1 GG), democracy, the rule of law, the principle of federalism (division into states) and the principle of the welfare state (Article 20 GG). 

Other principles stipulated in Article 20 of the Basic Law are the separation of powers and the right to protest. According to Article 79(3) GG, the principles of Article 1 and Article 20 GG cannot be changed (permanent clause). For the basic liberal democratic order or constitutional order, all participants in political life are bound and it is strongly protected (consolidated democracy).

Parliamentary Democracy 

The Federal Republic of Germany is considered a parliamentary democracy because the head of government, the Federal Chancellor, is directly elected by the National Assembly, the Bundestag. In contrast to presidential democracies, the Federal President has mostly representative functions; he does not have veto power and cannot hold key government positions himself.

Bang 

The triangle with the federal government at the top, below are layers of federal states, administrative districts, optional counties, associations and optional municipalities. The tight hierarchy is subdivided by city states and county-level cities, which perform tasks for several layers.

2. Vertical state structure of German politics

Based on the long-standing federal tradition from the estates in the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation to the member states of the German Empire, in contrast to the totalitarian unified state in the National Socialist era and as suggested by the victorious Western powers in the Frankfurt Documents.

Germany was defined as a federal state in the Basic Law, a decision that can no longer be changed under the so-called eternity clause in Article 79(3) GG. The new German states were created in 1946 in the Western Zones which united in 1949 to form the Federal Republic of Germany. At that time, all the states already had state constitutions, state governments, state parliaments and courts.

3. Parties in the German political system

According to the Basic Law, political parties have the duty to participate in forming the political will of the people. This makes the parties’ nomination of candidates for political positions and the organization of elections and the mobilization of voters a legislative duty. 

For this reason, parties receive a financial contribution from the state to cover the costs incurred when running for office. This method of reimbursing election costs was first implemented in Germany and is now applied in most democracies. 

According to the Basic Law, the establishment of political parties must comply with basic democratic principles (democracy for party members). Political parties must recognize the democratic state. Parties suspected of being undemocratic may be banned at the request of the federal government. 

However, such parties are not obligatory to be banned. If the federal government considers that it is appropriate to ban a party because such parties pose a threat to the democratic system, it can only file a petition for banning. The ban can only be issued by the Federal Constitutional Court. This way, the ruling party is prevented from banning another party that might make it difficult for them to compete in politics. 

In the history of the Federal Republic of Germany, there have been very few cases of party bans and even fewer cases of party bans. Although the Basic Law grants special rights to political parties, at their core political parties are forms of social expression. 

Parties are exposed to all the risks of electoral defeat, of members defecting from the party, and of the party itself being divided over personnel and agenda issues. The German party system is comprehensive and easy to understand. 

The German coalition parties belong to the larger family of Christian Democratic parties in Europe and run for election throughout Germany as the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) – except in Bavaria.

In the state of Bavaria, the CDU did not run for election itself and gave the state to the Christian Social Union (CSU) , a party closely related to the CDU. In the German Federal Republic’s parliament, the parliamentarians of these two parties have long been merged together in a common parliamentary group.

The Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) is the second largest party in the German party system. It belongs to the larger family of social democratic and social democratic parties in Europe.

The CDU/CSU and SPD coalitions both work for a social state in principle. The CDU/CSU coalition mainly brings together independent professionals, traders and entrepreneurs; the SPD is closer to the trade unions.

The Free Democratic Party (FDP) belongs to the family of liberal parties in Europe. Its main political stance is that the state should intervene as little as possible in the market. The FDP receives support mainly from the higher-income and higher-educated segments of society. 

The Green Party belongs to the family of Green and Ecological parties in Europe. Its program is characterized by a combination of a market economy and state regulations to protect nature and the environment. It also represents mainly a voter base with above-average income and education.

The Left Party is Germany’s youngest and most important political force. It is particularly strong in the five new states that joined the Federal Republic of Germany after German reunification. However, it is now present in the parliaments of other states as well. As a party promoting social justice, it competes mainly with the SPD.

4. The Federal President is the first citizen in the German political system.

The President of the Federation is the highest office. The President is not elected by the people, but by the Federal Congress. This Congress meets exclusively to elect the President. The Federal Congress is composed of half the members of the Federal Congress and half are elected by the state parliaments according to the number of seats each state has in the parliament.

Presidents exert their greatest influence by making highly anticipated public speeches. Federal presidents refrain from voicing party policy, but they do address current issues and sometimes urge the government, Congress, or the public to act. 

5. The Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe guards the Basic Law in the German political system. 

The Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe is very influential and has a high public reputation. The Constitutional Court is considered the “Guardian of the Basic Law” and through its directive decisions provides an effective interpretation of the constitutional text. 

The Constitutional Court has two courts that judge disputes over competence between legislative bodies and can declare laws inconsistent with the Basic Law. Any citizen can file a lawsuit with the Federal Constitutional Court if he or she believes that a law violates his or her fundamental rights. 

The great importance of the Federal Constitutional Court has recently been demonstrated by its rulings on the transfer of certain powers by the Federal Parliament to the European Union.

Thus, German politics is completely different from politics in Vietnam. Studying abroad in Germany, you will be able to encounter many new things about a German political system? parliamentary democracy with many different parties. 

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