Germany: little hope in times of crisis

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uwe Jun
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Social Democracy ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
Christian Democratic Union ◽  
The Social ◽  
Christian Social Union ◽  
Forward Looking

This chapter addresses social democracy in Germany. For many years, the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has performed poorly at the German parliamentary (Bundestag) elections, and crucially, has been unable to puncture the dominance of the CDU/CSU (Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union). The SPD is facing a range of problems, on numerous fronts. Programmatically, the SPD lacks a vision for society that is sufficiently coherent and forward-looking to attract voters. Moreover, the SPD's credibility has declined over the last two decades largely due to a combination of its failure to implement campaign promises and the difficulties it has experienced while seeking to address its tarnished legacy of office in the periods after 1998 and 2009.

German parties are preparing for early elections

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Economic Conditions ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
German Government ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
Christian Democratic Union ◽  
The Social ◽  
Christian Social Union ◽  
One Year

Subject Update on the German government. Significance Just over one year after the grand coalition between the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), its Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union (CSU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) was renewed, all three parties are preparing for its breakdown by sharpening their profiles. Impacts Conflicts between the coalition parties may deepen if deteriorating economic conditions force hard budgetary choices. Chancellor Angela Merkel’s international influence is likely to decline as her domestic position weakens. Low poll ratings could moderate the parties’ desire for early elections.

scholarly journals Introduction

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-30
Author(s):  
Eric Lagenbacher
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Grand Coalition ◽  
Economic Situation ◽  
Leadership Role ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
Christian Democratic Union ◽  
The Social ◽  
German Bundestag ◽  
Alternative For Germany

The elections for the German Bundestag on 24 September 2017 saw heavy losses for the two governing parties—the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD)—and the rise of the rightpopulist Alternative for Germany (AfD). It took almost six months for a new grand coalition to be formed in light of the extremely fragmented parliament. Despite the good economic situation and relative calm domestically and internationally, much change is occurring under the surface. Most importantly, the country is preparing for the end of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s long tenure. Who and what will come next? Can the surging AfD be contained? Will Germany step up into the leadership role for which so many have called?

scholarly journals German Social Democracy and German State Socialism, 1876–1884

1964 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 202-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vernon L. Lidtke
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Social Democracy ◽  
State Socialism ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
Social Democrats ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
The Social ◽  
History Of ◽  
Socialist Movement ◽  
The One

In the late eighteen-seventies, the German Social Democratic Party, while still healing the wounds of old battles between Lassalleans and Eisenachers, was confronted by foes who delivered attacks on two levels. On the one level, Bismarck and his supporters fought energetically to annihilate the party with the passage of the Socialist Law (October 21, 1878). After some initial faltering steps, the Social Democrats found a firm footing and struggled successfully to preserve their political existence. The movement was preserved, even though the party organization, its affiliates and its newspapers were suppressed. On another level, the Social Democrats faced an ideological challenge. Their political suppression broadly paralleled the emergence of a conservative socialism which flourished for a short time in a variety of forms. Whatever clothing it wore, conservative socialism aimed to undermine the growing appeal of Social Democracy to the working-men of Germany. A theory of State Socialism was the most attractive garment designed by conservative social thought. The response of the Social Democratic Party to the various facets of this conservative socialism is a significant chapter in the history of the German socialist movement.

Lenin and Bolshevism

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lars T. Lih
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Social Democracy ◽  
Political Freedom ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
New Era ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Revolution

The strategy of European Social Democracy, as embodied in the German Social Democratic Party (SPD) and set forth in the canonical writings of Karl Kautsky, was based on the aggressive use of political freedom to carry out large-scale propaganda campaigns. Lenin aimed at implanting this strategy into the uncongenial soil of Russian absolutism, which gave rise to his organizational ideas for the Social Democratic underground. After the 1905 revolution, Bolshevism was defined by a scenario for overthrowing the tsar in which the socialist proletariat would provide class leadership to the putatively democratic peasantry. Lenin responded to the crisis of European Social Democracy in 1914 by putting forward a vision of a new era of global revolutions, taken in large part from Kautsky’s writings. There is more continuity between pre-war Bolshevism and the revolution in 1917 than is commonly realized, but one crucial shift was the marginalization of political freedom.

The SPD after Brandt’s Fall–Change or Continuity?

1975 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Paterson
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Turning Point ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
Federal Election ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
Christian Democratic Union ◽  
History Of ◽  
Christian Social Union ◽  
Post War ◽  
First Time

THE RESULT OF THE FEDERAL ELECTION OF NOVEMBER I972 APPEARED to many as a turning point in the post-war history of the German Social Democratic Party. For the first time in the history of the Federal Republic, the SPD. was the largest party winning 45.9 per cent of the list votes (230 seats in the Bundestag) to the CDU/CSU's 44.8 per cent (225 seats). In 1957 the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union had enjoyed a lead of 18.4 per cent over the SPD. This lead was steadily whittled away after the party adopted the moderate Bad Godesberg Programme in 1959. The SPD gained 4.4 per cent in 1961,3. 1 per cent in 1965, 3.4 per cent in 1969 and 3.2 per cent in 1972

scholarly journals German Politics and Intergovernmental Negotiations on the Eurozone Budget

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 230-240
Author(s):  
Shawn Donnelly
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
German Government ◽  
Christian Democratic Union ◽  
German Politics ◽  
Fiscal Transfers ◽  
Party Positions ◽  
The Social ◽  
Christian Social Union

This article examines selected political party positions on a Eurozone budget and fiscal transfers between 2018 and 2021. It posits that German government positions on common European debt and fiscal policy have undergone a significant but fragile shift. It must contend with continued domestic hostility before it can be said to be a lasting realignment. A great deal with depend less on the Social Democratic Party that is largely responsible for bringing it about with the support of German Greens, and more on the willingness of the Christian Democratic Union, their Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union and the German voting public to adopt a more interventionist fiscal policy as well, generating shared commitments to economic policy at home and in Europe. That has not happened yet.

New German government will consolidate Merkel’s legacy

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Grand Coalition ◽  
Growth Potential ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
Green Party ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Christian Democratic Union ◽  
The Social ◽  
Christian Social Union ◽  
Regional Elections

Significance Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) will once again govern in a grand coalition with the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the CDU’s Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU). Impacts Regional elections in Hesse and Bavaria at the end of 2018 will be the first tests for the grand coalition. The AfD will continue to grow in the short term, but incompetence may restrict its growth potential. The Green Party could emerge as a viable left-of-centre alternative to the SPD. Merkel’s electoral mishap diminishes her standing in the EU and could embolden countries opposed to French-German reform efforts. Domestically, euro-area reform could be hindered if dissent spills over from the AfD into the more conservative ranks of the CDU/CSU.

Germany

2021 ◽  
pp. 98-122
Author(s):  
Matthew S. Shugart ◽  
Matthew E. Bergman ◽  
Cory L. Struthers ◽  
Ellis S. Krauss ◽  
Robert J. Pekkanen
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Strong Support ◽  
Proportional Representation ◽  
Strong Tendency ◽  
Social Democratic Party ◽  
Social Democratic ◽  
Christian Democratic Union ◽  
The Social ◽  
Legislative Committees ◽  
National Reputation

This chapter tests the book’s premises on a case of mixed-member proportional representation (MMP) representation, using the case of legislative committees in the Bundestag of Germany. Its results cover the two largest parties, the Christian Democratic Union and the Social Democratic Party. German parties should have a strong tendency to use the expertise model, because the MMP system means that votes cast anywhere in the country are of approximately equal value in maximizing seats. Thus, parties are able to emphasize their national reputation for policy, for which matching the expertise of their personnel to committee function is valuable. The MMP system also creates local single-seat districts in which nearly half of members are elected. Thus, aspects of the electoral–constituency model also should apply, as parties seek to develop connections to constituencies through local and personal vote of their legislators. The results offer strong support for the premises of the theory.

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