North Rhine-Westphalia state election, 2012

Pirates: 20
SPD: 99
Green: 29
CDU: 67
FDP: 22

The election of the state parliament of North Rhine -Westphalia the 16th electoral period took place as early election on 13 May 2012. The red-green coalition of the SPD and the Greens, who had previously formed a minority government under the leadership of Hannelore Kraft, it won the majority. The CDU, however, reached its worst result ever in North Rhine-Westphalia since 1947. During the FDP made the entry into the state parliament, missed the Left him clearly. The Pirate Party is the first time represented in North Rhine- Westphalia state.

5.1 campaign issues
5.2 TV debate
5.3 Wahl-O -Mat
5.4 Miscellaneous

Initial situation

From the state election in North Rhine -Westphalia in 2010, the CDU was despite strong losses at 34.6 percent, just as the strongest party. The SPD came to 34.5 percent. The Greens built their vote share significantly from 12.1 percent of the vote. The FDP reached 6.7 percent of the vote in mild votes wins. The Left went with 5.6 percent for the first time in the state legislature. CDU and SPD won 67 of 181 parliamentary seats each, Alliance 90/The Greens won 23, the FDP 13 and The Left 11 seats. The previous CDU / FDP coalition government lost its majority in parliament. After lengthy exploratory talks SPD and the Greens formed under the leadership of Hannelore Kraft (SPD), a red-green state government without its own majority in the parliament. For decision of laws, the state government was therefore always dependent on a voice from another faction in the parliament (assuming their own factions accepted completely for your own application ).

As a trend-setting decisions that have been brought about in a compromise of the government parties and the opposition CDU, apply an agreement for the peace of the school, the firm wrote the school structure of North Rhine -Westphalia for twelve years, and ( jointly negotiated by the government parties and the FDP ) agreements to reform the financing of the municipalities in the country ( "Strengthening Pact Act").

It was during the term of multiple speculation about elections or a new formation of the government. For the first time they came on after failed attempts to form a majority government. Again, the possibility of new elections was discussed, as the Constitutional Court submitted the supplementary budget for 2010, said in a hitherto unique process for invalid because the debt had exceeded the amount of investment.

On March 14, 2012, the Section was rejected 03 ( Ministry of Interior and Communal ) of the budget presented by the state government with the 91 votes of the opposition parties. In the opinion of jurists of the state parliament Management budget was thus rejected as a whole; this view was controversial among lawyers. As a result, the parliament dissolved on the same day on unanimously. Under Article 40 of the Constitution of the country's main committee took the rights of the Landtag true until the convening of the new parliament; Force and the red-green cabinet remained until the election of a new Prime Minister in office.

Election date

The state election was held on 13 May 2012 and so, as always, since 1975, on a Sunday in May. Three early elections were together with the elections in Saarland on 25 March 2012 and in Schleswig -Holstein 6 May 2012 thus held in German countries in 2012.

Since the parliament following a unanimous decision of its members has dissolved before the end of the 15th legislature, which would have ended as scheduled according to the state constitution on 8 June 2015 in accordance with Article 35 of the state constitution on 14 March 2012, had the election to parliament of 16. legislature under Article 35 and Article 30 are carried on a Sunday or a public holiday within sixty days after the dissolution of the Diet.

Since the period for the submission of nominations under § 19 ( 1) National Election Act and § 20 ( 2) provincial election law was very tight, the Minister of the Interior in accordance with § 46 ( 5) had ordered state election law that nominations no later than 33 rather than as a regular proper choice had to be submitted 48 days before the election.

Electoral system

The member of parliament are elected by universal, equal, direct, secret and free choice. The Landtag of North Rhine -Westphalia is elected by a system of personalized proportional representation with closed lists, similar to the federal election law. The Diet has at least 181 MPs are elected from those 128 each in a constituency directly by first vote. Elected is the candidate with the most votes. The seats in the parliament are distributed proportionally according to the Sainte- Laguë method to the parties according to their number of second votes in the country. Overhang seats are offset by compensatory seats, so that practically always the second vote share corresponding proportional composition of the parliament is ensured.

Parties and Candidates

Land lists

The state lists the following parties have been granted:

State lists had to be submitted by 10 April 2012. Parties that are not represented in the country in the last parliament, or Bundestag due to a nomination, had to submit 1000 signatures of support for the admission of its country list. The decision on the approval of regional lists was carried out by the Electoral Commission on 14 April 2012. Paths falls below the minimum number of valid signatures of support of the Election Committee rejected the State party lists from now ... Alliance for Germany, for democracy by plebiscite, German Democratic Party, Party Bible spreader Christians and Social justice - North Rhine- Westphalia from.

More constituency nominations

The constituency nominations of the following other parties and groups of voters whose national list is not an option, and the following independent candidates were allowed to choose from:

From now on ... Alliance for Germany, for democracy by plebiscite ( referendum ): 4 constituency nominations
Federation for Germany as a whole ( BGD ): 1 constituency nomination
Civil Rights Movement Solidarity ( BüSo ): 4 constituency nominations
Liberal Democrats - the Social Liberals - (LD ): 1 constituency nomination
Pensioners Party (RRP ): 2 constituency nominations
Single applicants: 7 constituency nominations

For approval of a direct candidates in the constituency of the parties that are represented in the country not in the last parliament, or Bundestag due to a nomination, collect voter groups or individual applicants 100 supporting signatures of eligible voters in each constituency had.

Top candidates

The Federal Environment Minister and state chairman of the CDU NRW Röttgen was elected by his party with 96.5 percent of the delegate votes at the first place on the state list. Prime Minister Hannelore Kraft was elected with 99.3 percent of the top candidate of the SPD. Alliance 90/The Greens chose the Deputy Prime Minister Sylvia Löhrmann with 98.4 percent as the top candidate. The FDP NRW Association elected the Member of Parliament and former secretary general of the federal FDP, Christian Lindner No. 1 on the country's list of the FDP. Lindner was elected as the successor to the Federal Health Minister Daniel Bahr, chairman of the FDP national association in North Rhine-Westphalia on May 6, 2012. The Left chose Catherine Schwabedissen the top candidate. The Pirates chose Joachim Paul to their top candidates.

Hannelore Kraft (SPD )

Sylvia Löhrmann ( Green )

Christian Lindner ( FDP)

Catherine Schwabedissen ( left )

Joachim Paul ( Pirates )

Electioneering

Campaign issues

Personal: Röttgen has also been criticized from his own camp, because he signaled no willingness in the election campaign to become leader of the opposition in parliament after an election defeat and to withdraw no later than after the election of his office as Federal Minister. Was reminded of Federal Minister Norbert Blum, who lost the state election in 1990 with a similar attitude.
Fiscal Policy: The CDU began immediately after the dissolution of the Diet the theme sound public finances as a campaign issue to put in the foreground. Criticized the amount of the debt of the country. Hannelore Kraft pointed out that the country in per capita debt in comparison with other countries is rather average and long term contributes her policy approach of " preventive social policy " fiscal consolidation.
Municipal finance: Several municipal leaders from the Ruhr called for a reform of the Solidarity Pact and increased support for the economically underdeveloped cities of the Ruhr. While the SPD supported this call, the CDU campaigned for the unchanged continuation of the Solidarity Pact.
Family policy: the discussion of the federal government care benefits, on its introduction, the representatives of the state government may have to vote in the Bundesrat, has been rejected by the North Rhine -Westphalia, the SPD, while Röttgen defended the care allowance because it is the choice between a child care in a child care center ( day care ) or promotes home. The CDU accused the state government to submit a tentative expansion of daycare and Hannelore Kraft criticized for being entering a " Kita- duty." Power denied plans for a " Kita- duty" and was mainly to blame the previous government for the below-average compared to Germany as number of day care places.
Education Policy: The topic of school policy played in the election campaign because of the measures taken by consensus between the SPD, CDU and Greens peace at school not matter much.

TV debate

On April 30, 2012, Hannelore Kraft and Röttgen met for a televised debate on WDR television. 2 May 2012 discussed the WDR television the top candidates of the date represented in the Landtag parties and the Pirates in a " heavyweight round".

Wahl-O -Mat

The Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb ) and the Center for Political Education North Rhine-Westphalia state election of 2012 presents the Wahl-O -Mat, the content has been developed by an editorial team composed of representatives of lpb North Rhine -Westphalia. Consult doing so they were the institutional support of the Wahl-O- Mats and several scientists.

Others

The civil rights movement per NRW had announced before mosques islam critical issue cartoons, including the Mohammed caricatures, Kurt Westergaard. German Interior Minister Hans -Peter Friedrich ( CSU) expressed fears that it could lead to escalations between right-wing extremists and Salafists. The interior minister of North Rhine -Westphalia Ralf Jäger ordered the police authorities not to let the protesters into the immediate vicinity of the mosques. But in May there were violent attacks from the Islamist spectrum on police officers, some of whom were injured, some seriously.

Surveys

The most polls predicted a majority for the continuation of the Red-Green coalition of Prime Minister Hannelore Kraft. The re-entry of the FDP and the Left, however, was uncertain. For the pirates, the pollsters predict the secure collection in the North Rhine- Westphalian state.

Result

The final outcome of the state election in 2012 was announced on 25 May 2012 by the Land Returning Officer.

Eligible voters: 13,262,049
Voters: 7,901,268
Turnout: 59.6 %
Valid Erststimmen: 7.78061 million
Valid second votes: 7793995

The valid votes were distributed as follows:

The turnout was slightly higher than in the previous state election with 59.6 %. This turnout was nevertheless the third lowest of all state elections in North Rhine -Westphalia. The SPD could since the 2000 state election win more seats than the CDU for the first time. The CDU remained well below its previously worst election result - 34.6 % of all valid second votes in the 2010 election, the Pirate Party took 7.8% of all valid second votes for the first time in the state legislature. . The Left, which was first represented in the 15th electoral term in Parliament, did not make their re-entry.

Since the SPD scored 23 overhang seats, their country list not moved first. Only the declared before the inaugural meeting mandate waiver by Karl- Heinz Krems allowed the former leader of the SPD parliamentary group Norbert Romans as substitutes by the state list to enter parliament and his re-election as chairman of the SPD parliamentary group. The CDU occupied 38 of their 67 seats on their country list. All other feeding in the parliamentary groups occupy their positions exclusively through its national lists. The relatively high number of overhang seats (23) and the resulting 33 compensatory seats of the 237 seats counted parliament the 16th electoral term of the second largest of all previous North Rhine-Westphalia Landtag (the parliament of the 11th legislature had since 1992 239 seats). Compared to the parliament of the last legislature of the state parliament grows by 56 seats.

The desired red-green coalition in the parliament has the 16th electoral term over 128 mandates and thus has 9 seats more than the 119 seats needed for a majority.

Consequences

The CDU top candidate Röttgen announced due to the election results shortly after the polls closed to resign as Chairman of the CDU North Rhine -Westphalia. June 30, 2012 Laschet was elected as the new Chairman of the CDU North Rhine -Westphalia. Waive its over the national list -won seat in Parliament informed Röttgen on 30 May 2012.

After significant criticism of Röttgen, inter alia, by the Bavarian Prime Minister Horst Seehofer, German Chancellor Angela Merkel asked May 16, 2012 the Federal President to dismiss the Federal Environment Minister. On 22 May 2012, the President appointed on proposal of the Federal Chancellor Peter Altmaier to succeed Röttgen.

The inaugural session of the Parliament was held on 31 May 2012. Carina Goedecke, member of the SPD parliamentary group, which replaced the CDU faction as the strongest group in parliament, was elected as the successor of Eckhard Uhlenberg (CDU ) as President of the Landtag.

On June 12, 2012 Hannelore Kraft and Sylvia Löhrmann presented the coalition agreement of its proposed coalition government. On June 20, Hannelore Kraft was elected prime minister again by Parliament by 137 votes. She received at least nine votes from the ranks of the opposition. Several pirates had announced plans to choose power.

Election analyzes

The performance of the CDU and the SPD was based largely on the popularity of the two leading candidates. Hannelore Kraft was therefore very popular and her work in the last legislature was estimated; Röttgen exhibited deficits in sympathy, proximity and credibility. The voter 's preferred mostly a continuation of the red-green coalition, which they zumaßen a high level of expertise in the policy areas economy and jobs but especially in the areas of education, family and social affairs; the CDU, they measured to a significant competitive edge only when finances issue. 34 percent of all voters have a choice in North Rhine -Westphalia seen as a vote on the policy at the federal level. For good performance of the FDP relatively popular Christian Lindner added. The voters of the Pirate Party wanted with her choice to express our dissatisfaction with other parties. Green and pirates reported, especially among young voters on high approval rates, whereas in the CDU, SPD, FDP voter age with the vote share positively correlated.

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