Justice: Breaked judge election shakes coalition

The preliminary failure of the judge’s election in the Bundestag, the black-red coalition plunged into its first tangible crisis just before the summer break. Due to massive resistance in the Union faction against the SPD candidate Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf, the votes on a total of three suggestions for the Federal Constitutional Court were taken from the agenda at short notice.

Union faction leader Jens Spahn is now under pressure, who could not close the rows of the Union in time. Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) is also attacked by the SPD.

“Missing assertiveness”: SPD criticism of Spahn and Merz

“What we have experienced here today and in the last few days is a reference to a lack of assertiveness in the own faction of Jens Spahn, but also of Friedrich Merz,” said Dirk Wiese, the parliamentary managing director of the SPD parliamentary group. Similarly, the deputy SPD chairman and Saarland Prime Minister Anke Rehlinger in the “Stuttgarter Zeitung” and the “Stuttgarter Nachrichten” commented: “I am horrified. There seems to be a leadership problem in the Union.”

Vice Chancellor and Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil also warned the coalition partner: “If there are controversial votes here, then there must be leadership and responsibility.” This also means that some difficult decisions have to be made.

How things are going on is open. The SPD wants to stick to its candidate. There was initially no statement from the Potsdam constitutional lawyer Brosius-Gersdorf himself. Bundestag president Julia Klöckner (CDU) campaigned to make up for the elections in the next regular week of session – in other words in September. This is not quick enough for the Greens. You will be able to get a special meeting of the Bundestag next week.

Several dozen Union MPs registered concerns

The coalition had weeks to prepare the judge’s election for weeks. In addition to Brosius-Gersdorf, the SPD had nominated the Munich Jura professor Ann-Katrin Kaufhold and the Union, recommended by the constitutional court, Günter Spinner.

In the past week, the Union of Brosius-Gersdorf became public from the Union about her liberal attitude to abortions, but also because of her demand for an obligation to vaccinate during the Corona pandemic. Several dozen MPs registered concerns in a query by the top of the parliamentary point.

On Thursday evening, the Austrian plagiarism searcher Stefan Weber also referred to matches between the dissertation Brosius-Gersdorf and the habilitation thesis of her husband. Upon request, he told the German Press Agency that he had carried out the exam without client. The publication, however, came into the debate. The Union threatened the SPD with abstention. Finally, the coalition agreed to remove the judge elections.

SPD speaks of “hunt” to constitutional lawyer

Wiese then spoke of a damage to the Federal Constitutional Court and a “hunt” against the “highly respected lawyer” Brosius-Gersdorf. Klingbeil also protected her against the attacks from the Union. The gender equality and the right to self -determination of women would rightly have constitutional rank in Germany. “Incidentally, to protect this is the task of judges, especially at the Federal Constitutional Court.”

Opposition: “absolute scandal” and “absolute instability”

The opposition evaluated the removal of the judge elections as a disaster for black and red. The left-wing faction leader Heidi Reichinnek spoke of an “absolute scandal”, the left-wing politician Dietmar Bartsch of a “chaos unexpected”. The AfD parliamentary group manager Bernd Baumann accused the “absolute instability” government.

The Green Group leader Britta Haßelmann spoke of a “bad day for the parliament, for democracy and for the Federal Constitutional Court”. She clearly blame the CDU politician Spahn: “It is her inability as the group leader.”

Merz actually didn’t want a public dispute

The Union faction leader has been under pressure for weeks because of the affair about the procurement of Corona masks in his time as Minister of Health. Now he is accused of underestimating the resistance in his own faction against Brosius-Gersdorf.

After the discussion about the electricity tax reduction for everyone, it is the second time that there will be an open argument in the coalition – in just two months of reign. Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) had set himself a coalition without a public dispute – in contrast to the previous government of the SPD, the Greens and the FDP, which ultimately broken on the long -term zoff.

Chancellor has left the faction’s decision

He had largely held out of the public discussion about the election of judges. It was “the matter for the parliamentary group to decide how the election will take place on Friday,” he said on Tuesday. As a chancellor, he had no personal opinion to present.

In a special meeting of the CDU/CSU faction, Spahn emphasized the Union’s interest in a stable alliance with the SPD. Stability has been shown in the past few weeks, said the CDU politician, according to participants. “That remains the order.” CSU regional group leader Alexander Hoffmann said that within the coalition there are now discussions “how a election of constitutional judges can succeed in the Bundestag”.

Federal Council could come into play

At first, however, a solution was not evident. There is no immediate time pressure in the replacement of the freely vacant judges. Different deadlines apply depending on the judge to be occupied. From a certain point in time, the federal states in the Federal Council can choose the successors instead of the Bundestag – but they do not have to, but the Bundestag can continue to decide as well.