2024-09-11 22:50:36
The FDP faction is at a loss after the state elections in the east. An end to the traffic light coalition is not up for discussion. Instead, the Liberals want to score points with voters on two issues.
28 degrees, blue skies, finally Friday – and an FDP parliamentary group leader who is demonstratively spreading good cheer: “I am a fundamentally optimistic person,” says Christian Dürr with a smile in response to a journalist’s question. And you almost want to add inwardly: He has to be.
Because the perfect summer weather and the difficult situation facing the Liberals don’t seem to fit together very well these days. Last weekend, the FDP suffered a heavy defeat in the state elections in Thuringia and Saxony, missing out by miles on a place in the state parliaments.
Although this was to be expected by everyone, it doesn’t make things any better. In Saxony, the party performed so poorly, with a vote share of 0.9 percent, that the party’s funding is now at risk, leading to serious financial difficulties.
At the FDP parliamentary group’s retreat at the end of this week, not only was there traditional political work, such as drawing up new papers and positions, but also licking wounds.
Dürr and the FDP representatives met in Hamburg’s Speicherstadt district. They sat together in a glass-walled conference room for almost three days to discuss things. The press was only invited on Friday, the sunny day when the Liberals’ favorite topic was discussed: economic policy.
Before that, however, on Wednesday evening, things were supposed to have gotten serious. The “discussion after the state elections” reportedly lasted until 10 p.m. Participants described the atmosphere afterwards as “sometimes very depressing,” while others spoke of “general helplessness.” Still others praised: “The exchange was open and honest. And that was good.”
MPs fear for their mandates
A role in the discussion was probably also played by the fact that, in view of the weak polls, more and more MPs are worried about their mandate. After the next federal election, the Liberals are likely to win significantly fewer seats than the current 91, which they achieved with a result of 11.4 percent in the 2021 federal election.
The Liberals can only dream of such a result in the next election. In the ARD Deutschlandtrend they recently only received 4 percent, which means the FDP is below the five percent hurdle and would not be represented in the next Bundestag. But even if they were to be re-elected, there is one more problem: Due to the planned reduction in the size of the Bundestag, there are fewer seats to be distributed overall, so the Free Democrats would also receive even fewer seats.
This means that the top spots on the list, which the party will decide on in the regional associations at the end of the year, will become even more sought after. Even in the party of entrepreneurs, where many confidently emphasize that they have a well-paid job “before and after politics,” it is all about influence, power, and the desire to shape politics.
One might think that this is causing panic among the ranks of MPs. But unlike in parts of the party base, there is little sign of this in the parliamentary group. An early end to the traffic light coalition, as demanded by a group of FDP members, is certainly not up for debate in the parliamentary group. “Giving up after a bitter election night and shirking responsibility is not an option for the FDP,” Dürr told the newspapers of the Funke media group on Wednesday.
Many members of the parliamentary group see it similarly. “What would that bring us? Nothing!” said one on the sidelines of the meeting. They would just be the “bogeyman” who would plunge the country into chaos. “Nobody thinks that’s a good thing.” It would be better to carry on indestructibly – and ensure that the party’s plan works through good work in parliament.