German federal elections: how will the poll on September 26 take place?

The Germans will elect their deputies to the Bundestag this Sunday, September 26. The more than 60 million citizens who are called to go to the polls have two votes.

During the first vote, voters will have to elect a candidate from their constituency, each party being able to nominate one person. The candidate with the most votes will receive a direct mandate and enter the Bundestag.

By virtue of this first vote, 299 deputies will be admitted and each region will be represented in the Bundestag.

The second vote will be used to designate a party. It is of capital importance because it enables the majority of the Bundestag to be formed.

In order to help Germans make their choice, the federal agency for civic education has set up an interactive tool to compare candidates’ programs and compare them with the positions of voters.

“In total, 38 political groups participated in the “Wahl-O-Mat“explains the head of communications for the agency Daniel Kraft.

“You click on this online application, and so to speak, you compare yourself to their positions and theses, and at the end you are told which party is closest to your own opinion“.

Very popular, this application has been used by “about a quarter of voters in the last federal election“he specifies, either”15.7 million people“.

“This shows that if one approaches politics in a fun way, even party programs become exciting and worth reading.“.

Forty political parties have embarked on these elections, and at least 598 deputies are expected to sit in the Bundestag. The proportion of parties in parliament is decided by the second vote.

If a party obtains 30% of the vote, it obtains at least 30% of the seats, the minimum threshold being 5% to be able to be represented in parliament.

The distribution of seats in the second vote may be subject to adjustment to match the proportions of the ballot results. Under this system, the Bundestag always has more deputies than the 598 seats planned. In 2017, 709 MPs were elected, and that number is expected to be even higher this year.