Berlin, Feb. 12 (BNA): Berliners returned to the polls on Sunday choosing a city-state government for the second time in 18 months after a court ruled, for the first time in German history, an election invalid due to irregularities. .
The vote could oust left-wing mayor Franziska Giffe from office before the end of her term, and complicate the life of the federal chancellor, her party ally, Olaf Scholz, by denying his coalition more votes in the upper house of parliament.
The re-vote, which was ordered after the original election on Sept. 21, 2021, has been marred by irregularities including long lines and voters receiving incorrect ballots, another item on the indictment for those who see the German capital as a solid mess that lies to Germany. reputation for efficiency, Reuters reported.
The opposition Christian Democrats (CDU) hope the message will seal victory for them and put wind to their bad guys ahead of October elections in Hesse, home to Germany’s financial capital Frankfurt, where the conservative prime minister risks losing office to another ally of Schulz.
Polls gave the Christian Democrats around 25% of the vote in Berlin, comfortably ahead of the Social Democrats (SPD) with 21%, suggesting that voters are sympathetic to the idea of ending the SPD’s 22 years of unbroken rule.
“I want people to look at Berlin and see a place where things work,” said Christian Democratic candidate Kai Wegener, vowing to speed up public administration, repair dilapidated schools and improve public order.
But far more voters in a city known for its art and party scenes support parties to his left, including Giffey’s current coalition partners, the Greens, at 17%, and the Left, at 8%, meaning that even if Wegener comes first he may Struggling to form a government.
For young voters, many of whom have an immigrant background, the CDU’s calls for enhanced policing are particularly troubling.
For Berlin’s critics, disasters such as the city’s new airport, which opened in 2020 after a decade and several times over budget, symbolize the gulf between the crumbling, if likable, capital and wealthier cities like Munich or Hamburg.
For historian Tim Moss, the city’s struggles result in part from the Cold War, when a divided Berlin served as a shop window for the competing communist and capitalist worlds, meaning it could go awry as paypayers poured in benefits. Since then, he said, the city has struggled to achieve self-reliance.
Some of the criticisms sound outdated: the energy crisis resulting from the Russian invasion of Ukraine has cast doubt on the future of some of Germany’s successful manufacturing industries, while Berlin’s tech landscape has made it one of the fastest growing cities in Europe and one of the fastest growing cities in Germany. growing regional economies.
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