The German Elections: German Efficiency in Action

I had the privilege of observing the German Federal Election on Sunday, February 23, with a delegation of interested Americans assembled by the Hanns Seidel Stiftung, a think tank associated with Bavaria’s Christian Social Union (CSU) Party. The stakes for this election were high, with a German economy entering its third year of stagnation and contraction and fears about unsustainable migration driving 82.5% of Germans to the polls – the highest turnout totals in almost 40 years.

Campaign posters across Munich promised change, security, and economic relief in a nation where climate change regulations take an ever-increasing share of German incomes. Energy prices remain high, and unemployment has begun to tick up.

Pre-election polling showed a drift away from the more traditional parties, Olaf Scholz’s SPD, Friedrich Merz’s CDU/CSU, and even Robert Habeck’s Greens, and toward Alternativ für Deutschland (AfD) and Die Linke, which was born out in the results. SPD’s and the Greens’ underperformance led to Scholz’s and Habeck’s departures from political life. The former East Germany (GDR) is an AfD stronghold, and this extremist party is gaining ground in other parts of Germany, including Bavaria.

More than 30 years after reunification, the GDR still struggles to catch up with the West. Strikingly – 98% of Germany’s inheritance taxes are paid by residents of the former West Germany and only 2% by those living in the GDR, underscoring the failure of the East to develop generational wealth.

The elections themselves appeared exceedingly well-run and many of the ideas I hear from ALEC members on election reform have been implemented in Germany. Voters must show government-issued identification, which is tied to a tax ID number, when casting a ballot, and only citizens are permitted to vote. These policies are supported by ALEC members in our Only Citizens Vote Model Policy and the ALEC model Citizens Only Vote Amendment.

Voting by mail is permitted but discouraged. Ballots must arrive before election day to count, and paper ballots are universal. In a nod to German federalism, the Federal Constitutional Court tries to stay out of state or Länder issues when it comes to election law, and party affiliation is not part of the voter registration process. Provisional ballots may be cast, and objections may be filed by anyone who believes they were accidentally removed from the voter rolls. By custom, all campaigning ceases the night before the election.

Several volunteers staffed the Munich polling stations we visited, where there were no lines despite a steady stream of people arriving to vote. Voters refrained from wearing political gear, per German law, and electioneering, including campaign posters, were at least 50 meters from the polling locations. The Four Eyes Principle is employed when tallying ballots with preliminary results broadcast within an hour of polls closing at 6 pm. Soon after preliminary results are announced, a fascinating German election tradition, the Elefantenrunde, an election night debate among the candidates, begins.

The CDU/CSU’s Friedrich Merz won a plurality of the votes cast but will have to form a government with at least one and possibly two other parties. Merz reached out to the SPD to forge a governing coalition and began to address Germany’s many challenges.

As an American observer, I left Germany struck by both the contrasts and parallels to our own electoral system. The efficiency, transparency, and voter trust evident in the German process offer lessons worth considering, while the rising tide of extremism and economic discontent mirror global trends that defy easy solutions. Merz’s coalition-building efforts will test Germany’s resilience in the face of stagnation, division, and an uncertain future—challenges that will resonate far beyond its borders in the years ahead.