Internationals should have vote after 5 years in Germany, says Left Party

The Left Party (Die Linke) has suggested that non-German citizens be given full voting rights after five years of living in Germany. The CDU/CSU has called it an “absurd proposal”.

Die Linke wants voting rights for internationals

Die Linke has announced it will submit a proposal to the Bundestag to grant international residents full voting rights after five years of living in Germany, regardless of their nationality. 

Currently, most international residents cannot vote in elections at any level of government. EU citizens can vote in local elections, but only German citizens can vote in state and federal elections.

"14 million people live here, pay taxes, raise children and yet are still not allowed to vote," Die Linke parliamentary group leader Clara Bünger told WELT. According to the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), of the 14 million foreign residents living in Germany, around five million are EU citizens.

Bünger said the current system promotes “structural inequality” and a “democratic deficit” because German law applies to foreign residents, yet they have no chance to shape it through democratic representation. According to Die Linke’s motion, international residents live in Germany for an average of 15 years before casting a vote in a German election.

Naturalisation should be more affordable, says Bünger 

Bünger pointed out that while foreign residents have a path to voting rights through naturalisation, the process is costly and has many bureaucratic hurdles. The cost of naturalising can vary greatly depending on personal circumstances, but can easily run into the region of 800 to 1.000 euros.

“Bureaucratic hurdles mean people who are poor, single parents, or carers often fall through the cracks,” Bünger said. The Bundestag member for Dresden believes making the naturalisation process more affordable would be another step to strengthening representation in German democracy.

The governing CDU/CSU has spurned Die Linke’s proposal. "Democracy literally means "rule by the people" – and not the right to vote for everyone who happens to be present," CDU deputy parliamentary group leader Günter Krings said.

Speaking to WELT, the Greens (die Grüne) parliamentary group leader, Filiz Polat, said she supported the proposal. “While the CDU/CSU talks of borders and deterrence, this is really about a fundamental democratic question: Whoever is a permanent part of our society, should also have the possibility to participate in our democracy”.

Polat suggested that enfranchising foreign residents could first be tried at the municipal level, then considered at the state and federal levels.

What exactly is a Bundestag proposal, and what happens now?

In the German democratic system, a proposal (Antrag) is simply a way for a party faction or a group of Bundestag members to draw attention to a specific topic. Bundestag members then vote on the proposal. 

After the vote, the proposal can be submitted to relevant committees for further consideration, but this is not obligatory. This is a route for the Bundestag to solidify its stance on the topic. The Bundestag can also prompt the government to report on specific issues or submit a draft law.

Die Linke has said it will introduce its proposal at a plenary in the Bundestag before parliamentary summer recess, which is scheduled to begin on July 10.

So far, it seems highly likely that the governing CDU/CSU would reject the proposal, as would the opposition far-right AfD. However, the other half of the governing coalition, the SPD, has yet to make its stance public. 

Either way, because such a law would require amending the German constitution, it would need support from at least two-thirds of Bundestag members, which seems like a long shot in the current parliament.