Saxony-Anhalt state election, 2002
Encyclopedia
The Saxony-Anhalt state election, 2002, was conducted on April 21, 2002, to elect members to the Landtag of Saxony-Anhalt
.
. The campaign was influenced by the already started campaigns for the Bundestag elections in September.
The Deutsche Volksunion, who had had a great success in 1998, did not run at all, after suffering inner trouble which had ended in the secession of the so-called Freedom and Democracy People's Party (FDVP).
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=left colspan="2" valign=top| Parties
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan="1"| Votes
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan="2"| Vote % (change)
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan="2"| Seats (change)
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan="2"| Seat % (change)
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Christian Democratic Union
| 433,521
| 37.3
| +15.3
| 48
| +20
| 41.7
| +17.6
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Party of Democratic Socialism
| 236,484
| 20.4
| +0.7
| 25
| -
| 21.7
| +0.15
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Social Democratic Party of Germany
| 231,732
| 20.0
| -15.9
| 25
| -22
| 21.7
| -18.8
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Free Democratic Party
| 154,145
| 13.3
| +9.0
| 17
| +17
| 14.8
| +14.8
|- align=right
|bgcolor="#884400"|
|align=left| Law and Order Offensive Party
| 52,589
| 4.5
| +4.5
| 0
| -
| 0
| -
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Alliance '90/The Greens
| 22,696
| 2.0
| -1.3
| 0
| -
| 0
| -
|- align=right
|bgcolor="#884400"|
|align=left| German People's Union
| x
| 0.0
| -12.9
| 0
| -16
| 0
| -13.8
|- align=right
|bgcolor="darkgray"|
|align=left| All Others
| 29,818
| 2.6
| +0.4
| 0
| -
| 0
| -
|- align=right
!
!align=left| Totals
| 1,160,985
| 100
| -
| 115
| -1
| 100
| -
|}
, after its success in Hamburg
, did not manage to gain seats in another Landtag.
The PDS-backed SPD government no longer had enough seats to remain in power, and Wolfgang Böhmer
(CDU) was able to form a new government in coalition with the FPD, which had an extraordinary victory (13% from less than 5% in 1998).
Following the unexpected victory for the FDP, the party leader Guido Westerwelle
declared his party a "party for the whole people". The FDP nominated him "candidate for chancellor
". It was the first time that the party did so. ("Candidates for chancellor" are normally nominated by CDU/CSU and SPD, and the campaign of the FDP was widely not taken seriously.)
Five months before the Bundestag election
, the result was a major defeat for the red-green government of Gerhard Schröder
and weakened its stand in the Bundesrat
.
Landtag of Saxony-Anhalt
The Saxony-Anhalt Landtag is the state diet of the German federal state of Saxony-Anhalt. It convenes in Magdeburg and currently consists of 97 members of four Parties...
.
Issues and Campaign
The state was at the time of the election the "poorest" state of Germany and had the highest rate of unemploymentUnemployment
Unemployment , as defined by the International Labour Organization, occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively sought work within the past four weeks...
. The campaign was influenced by the already started campaigns for the Bundestag elections in September.
The Deutsche Volksunion, who had had a great success in 1998, did not run at all, after suffering inner trouble which had ended in the secession of the so-called Freedom and Democracy People's Party (FDVP).
Results
|-!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=left colspan="2" valign=top| Parties
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan="1"| Votes
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan="2"| Vote % (change)
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan="2"| Seats (change)
!style="background-color:#E9E9E9" align=center colspan="2"| Seat % (change)
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Christian Democratic Union
Christian Democratic Union (Germany)
The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
| 433,521
| 37.3
| +15.3
| 48
| +20
| 41.7
| +17.6
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Party of Democratic Socialism
| 236,484
| 20.4
| +0.7
| 25
| -
| 21.7
| +0.15
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Social Democratic Party of Germany
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
| 231,732
| 20.0
| -15.9
| 25
| -22
| 21.7
| -18.8
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Free Democratic Party
Free Democratic Party (Germany)
The Free Democratic Party , abbreviated to FDP, is a centre-right classical liberal political party in Germany. It is led by Philipp Rösler and currently serves as the junior coalition partner to the Union in the German federal government...
| 154,145
| 13.3
| +9.0
| 17
| +17
| 14.8
| +14.8
|- align=right
|bgcolor="#884400"|
|align=left| Law and Order Offensive Party
Law and Order Offensive Party
The Law and Order Offensive Party , short form Offensive D was a minor political party in Germany. It was founded in July 2000 by Hamburg judge Ronald Schill. It wished to call itself PRO but was forbidden from doing so after a judicial complaint by the Pro Deutsche Mitte party...
| 52,589
| 4.5
| +4.5
| 0
| -
| 0
| -
|- align=right
||
|align=left| Alliance '90/The Greens
Alliance '90/The Greens
Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany, formed from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir...
| 22,696
| 2.0
| -1.3
| 0
| -
| 0
| -
|- align=right
|bgcolor="#884400"|
|align=left| German People's Union
German People's Union
The German People's Union is a nationalist political party in Germany. It was founded by publisher Gerhard Frey as an informal association in 1971 and established as a party in 1987. Financially, it is largely dependent on Frey....
| x
| 0.0
| -12.9
| 0
| -16
| 0
| -13.8
|- align=right
|bgcolor="darkgray"|
|align=left| All Others
| 29,818
| 2.6
| +0.4
| 0
| -
| 0
| -
|- align=right
!
!align=left| Totals
| 1,160,985
| 100
| -
| 115
| -1
| 100
| -
|}
Post-election
The right-wing-populist Law and Order Offensive PartyLaw and Order Offensive Party
The Law and Order Offensive Party , short form Offensive D was a minor political party in Germany. It was founded in July 2000 by Hamburg judge Ronald Schill. It wished to call itself PRO but was forbidden from doing so after a judicial complaint by the Pro Deutsche Mitte party...
, after its success in Hamburg
Hamburg state election, 2001
The Hamburg state election, 2001, was conducted on September 23, 2001, to elect members to the Hamburgische Bürgerschaft of Hamburg...
, did not manage to gain seats in another Landtag.
The PDS-backed SPD government no longer had enough seats to remain in power, and Wolfgang Böhmer
Wolfgang Böhmer
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Böhmer is a German politician and former Minister-President of Saxony-Anhalt from 16 May 2002 to 19 April 2011. He served as President of the Bundesrat in 2002/03....
(CDU) was able to form a new government in coalition with the FPD, which had an extraordinary victory (13% from less than 5% in 1998).
Following the unexpected victory for the FDP, the party leader Guido Westerwelle
Guido Westerwelle
Guido Westerwelle [] is a German liberal politician, who, since 28 October 2009, has been serving as the Foreign Minister in the second cabinet of Chancellor Angela Merkel, and who was Vice Chancellor of Germany from 2009 to 2011. He is the first openly gay person to hold either of those positions...
declared his party a "party for the whole people". The FDP nominated him "candidate for chancellor
Chancellor
Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...
". It was the first time that the party did so. ("Candidates for chancellor" are normally nominated by CDU/CSU and SPD, and the campaign of the FDP was widely not taken seriously.)
Five months before the Bundestag election
German federal election, 2002
The 15th German federal election, 2002 was conducted on 22 September 2002, to elect members to the Bundestag of Germany.-Issues and campaign:...
, the result was a major defeat for the red-green government of Gerhard Schröder
Gerhard Schröder
Gerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor...
and weakened its stand in the Bundesrat
Bundesrat of Germany
The German Bundesrat is a legislative body that represents the sixteen Länder of Germany at the federal level...
.