Saarland state election, 2012

• Left: 9
• Pirates: 4
• Green: 2
• SPD: 17
• CDU: 19

The elections to the 15th Saarland parliament took place on 25 March 2012. After the termination of the ruling coalition since 2009 Jamaica by Annegret Kramp Prime Minister Barrow Bauer and subsequent, failed negotiations over a grand coalition, the parliament dissolved on 26 January 2012 in order to pave the way for early elections free.

As the most powerful force of the CDU prime minister Kramp - carts Bauer emerged from the election, followed by the SPD and the Left. Compared to the 2009 election, the SPD was able to win by 6.1 percentage points to improve their performance. The Pirate Party, which contested the first time to a state elections in Saarland, was achieved with 7.4 % of the votes from the prior entry into the state parliament and thus for the first time in the state parliament of a German surface state. Lost the election were the FDP ( -8.0 percentage points) and the left (-5.2 percentage points). The FDP failed at 1.2% significantly at the 5- percent threshold, which she slid behind the family party, and is no longer represented in the 15th Saarland parliament. The Greens recorded for the first time in four years ( state election in Hamburg 2008 ) at a state election losses ( -0.9 percentage points) and coated with 5.0% only very scarce back in the Saarland Landtag.

Even before the election, the CDU and the SPD had announced to want to form a coalition after the election - then clarified with political conditions. Six weeks after the election, the two parties agreed on a coalition agreement and chose on 9 May 2012 the CDU state chairman and election winner Kramp - carts Bauer closed to the Prime Minister this grand coalition.

Election result

The country's election manager was the final official results announced:

Starting position

The early elections was announced by Prime Minister Annegret Kramp - CDU - carts Bauer on January 19, 2012, after she had terminated the coalition between her party, the FDP and the Greens.

Parties and Candidates

The following parties have been approved by the provincial election supervisor or the county election officials:

The parties have not previously represented in the Landtag had submitted 300 signatures of supporters for approval per constituency.

Surveys

Pre-election polls predicted a neck-and -neck race between the ruling CDU and the opposition SPD, which could increase almost ten percentage points compared to the last state election. Despite the collapse of the Jamaica coalition opinion research predicted hardly any losses or even slight gains for the Christian Democrats, while the former coalition partner, the FDP and Alliance 90/The Greens would have to fear for a place in parliament. Also for the Left stronger losses were forecast, the status as the third- strongest force in parliament was seen but not being threatened. The pirates have been a good chance to be able to move in the state legislature for the first time. After Kramp - carts Bauer and SPD opposition leader Maas had already announced their intention to form a grand coalition after the election, the interest finally focused on the truncation of the CDU and the SPD and the resulting claim to represent the Prime Minister in the targeted government alliance.

The following voting intentions were imposed after the termination of the black-yellow- green coalition by Annegret Kramp - carts Bauer ( CDU). For the Sunday question the pollsters following proportions stated thus:

For the question, who would you choose directly to the Prime Minister of the Saarland, the pollsters gave the following results:

Controversy surrounding the five-percent hurdle

The An incoming to choose small party initiative called Direct Democracy on 15 March 2012, no longer to let the five-percent hurdle in the coming state election apply. The party filed with the Constitutional Court of the Saarland make specific application for interim relief. The justification of the party was that the five-percent hurdle penalizes small parties. Also, be in Saarland even without the restrictive clause stable political conditions to be expected. The party on the basis that the reasons that made it possible that the restrictive clause in the European elections in Germany is no longer valid since 2011.

The Constitutional Court dismissed the case on March 22 as unfounded.

A waiver of the five- percent threshold would - provided that the voting behavior would have remained under the changed conditions the same - nothing changed on the allocation of seats, as none of the failed at the hurdle parties has reached the number of votes in the seat allocation method used in the Saarland D ' Hondt is necessary for a seat.

Group and party change after the election

Even before the first session of the Diet gave Pia Döring, which had been chosen for The Left in the state parliament, announced that she would go to the SPD. Thus, the SPD now has 18 MPs.